


Slowly Crumbling Like Pastries

by Hayat



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: 19-Year-Old Harry, 21-Year-Old Louis, Alternate Universe, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Anxiety, But please, Depression, Famous Harry, Forced Prostitution, Graphic Description, Human Trafficking, Hurt/Comfort, I don't know else to tag, Kidnapped Louis, M/M, Nightmares, Non-Famous Louis, PTSD, Rape Recovery, Rape/Non-con Elements, Singer Harry, Starvation, Unhealthy Relationships, do read, let me know, this is gonna be sad
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-08
Updated: 2017-10-28
Packaged: 2018-08-13 21:14:42
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 10
Words: 28,594
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7986454
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hayat/pseuds/Hayat
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Louis counted every day that went by without him returning home. Even after he lost hope, he still counted. Three years, two months and sixteen days later, he was still counting. And every night, before he fell asleep, he whispered "I love you too Hazza. I love you too."</p><p> </p><p>Or the one where Louis was kidnapped by Simon and forced into prostitution and Harry grew up to be a singer but never got over his childhood best friend, Louis.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Captive

**Author's Note:**

> Leave your thoughts below! Kudos too!  
> Also, if any of you find a mistake anywhere, would you please point it out to me. Thank you!

 

_They want my body,_

_They want to sell my soul._

_There isn't much I can do to save myself,_

_I have no choice of my own._

> _But baby, if they tried to take you_

_I'd turn into a monster_

_And I'd tear them apart._

_I'd burn in hellfire_

_If that's what it takes,_

_To keep you safe._

 

Louis picked up his pace, almost jogging now. He could still hear the footsteps behind him. 'Go away, Harry. Please, go away,' he thought, desperately. "Louis! Wait! Why are you -ouch!" Louis heard him stumble over something and he almost stopped. Almost. Instead, he walked faster, gritting his teeth against the pain in his body. "Why are you running from me? You just disappeared. You didn't even take your things. I haven't seen you in ages, Lou!" he yelled, frustration clear in his voice.

  
'Three years, two months and sixteen days,' Louis muttered under his breath as he peered at a clock inside a shop. "Fuck!" he exclaimed and broke into a run, ignoring the searing pain that went up his spine. It would be worse, so much worse, if he was late. Harry was still following him.

  
Louis slowed down when he reached the street that would take him to his destination. He didn't want Harry to follow him here. He really, really didn't want him to know that world. He had to go in. Gulping past the thick lump in his throat, Louis picked up a brick from one of the crumbling buildings and turning around, he hurled it at Harry. He didn't wait to see if he hit Harry. He didn't have time for that. He heard a thud as he took off again. He could hear Harry's steps falter. He heard the small gasp, the confused "Lou, what...?". Now, he was in a different kind of pain and it surpassed all physical pain.

  
He was walking with his head down and blinking back tears by the time he entered the seemingly deserted building. He blindly nagivated through the countless passageways. He wasn't really looking where he was going, which was probably why he walked facefirst into a human wall. Louis stumbled backward, mumbling apologies but he lost his voice when he looked up and saw Simon glaring down at him.

  
"You're late," he said. His voice sent shivers down Louis' spine. Louis immediately dropped to his knees, eyes glued to the floor, hands clasped behind his back. He could feel his hands trembling as he whispered, "I'm sorry, sir."

  
He knew it was coming. He did. But it never failed to take him off guard when Simon kicked him on his side sending him tumbling sideways. Louis knew what came next as well but he still scrambled to get back up till Simon's boot landed on his cheek, holding him down. "I thought, by now, you would've learned. But you're so keen on disobeying all of our rules. It makes me wonder...maybe you like this. You like being punished, don't you, slut?"

  
Louis grimaced. "N-no, sir. It was a mistake. I-I'm sorry," he said in a shaky voice. Simon snickered before removing his foot from Louis' face. Before Louis could even try to get up, Simon had his hair in his fist and was dragging him down the hallway, passing several vacant eyed people on the way. Louis stumbled after him, his hands clutching onto Simon's hand in his hair.

  
His morning had been so much worse than he had ever expected. First of all, he had woken up to his body being flung out the door, followed by his clothes. Embarrassed, he had run into an alley to pull on his clothes. He'd managed to make it to the tube despite being in agony from a night of torture. And there, he'd seen him. Harry.

  
Louis had been over the moon on seeing his best friend for all of five seconds before he remembered that he couldn't meet him. He couldn't be seen by him. He couldn't be seen interacting with anyone. He'd silently watched Harry, noticing the little changes and the big ones- the way his hair had reached his shoulders, the way he seemed a little bit toned now, the way he looked taller than him now, the way he still interacted with the people around him as though he personally knew them all.

  
And then, forest green had met sea blue and Louis' heart had stopped. Thankfully, he'd reached his stop and Louis literally ran out, hoping that his hoodie and the muffler hiding the lower half of his face would be enough. Unfortunately, Harry had decided to follow after him. Harry had recognized him. Of course he had. Louis hated himself for hurting him. He hoped that the rock hadn't hit him too hard but he couldn't bare the thought of what would have happened if Harry had followed him here. And now, he was late and he'd be punished and oh god! He wished he was dead.

  
Soon, too soon, he found himself standing naked in the middle of an underground room. Louis whimpered softly as Simon tied his wrists together and then he was dangling from the ceiling, his toes barely touching the ground. Over the past three years, this had happened more times than he cared to count but the pain was still as intense as ever. The scream that tore through his throat as the whip lashed down on his back was just as loud as the first time it had happened.  
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." Louis chanted. Simon walked around to his front and grabbed his jaw. Louis fell silent immediately, blinking furiously to keep the tears from falling. Simon wouldn't like that. Well, he would... but he'd use it to his own benefit. "You're sorry, are you?" said Simon. "You didn't seem very sorry when you made the same mistake for the fifth time. What did I say about coming back on time?"

  
Louis ducked his head. He couldn't possibly expect Simon to understand that he had almost no control over when he returned here. Simon already knew that Louis could only leave the clients' houses when they allowed him to leave. He just liked to pretend that Louis had a choice so that he can also pretend that Louis had disobeyed him and that he needs to be punished.

  
"Th-that I have to be b-back by n-nine, or...or I'd be p-punished," Louis answered softly. Simon patted his cheek. "Good boy," he said. "And what time did you get back?"

  
Louis stared at him, stunned. Was he serious? The bastard knew that Louis didn't have a watch. He had personally ripped his watch off his wrist three years ago. He knew that Louis didn't have any way of knowing what time exactly he'd returned. Louis remembered the clock at the shop. It had been two minutes to nine when he'd looked at it. He took a wild guess. "Around f-five... past nine...?" he answered. It came out more like a question.

  
"Are you asking me, boy?" said Simon. "N-no," Louis replied.

  
"You're wrong, though. You returned at two minutes past nine..." Louis looked up at him with hopeful eyes, "...but you're still late."

Louis heart dropped to his stomach as Simon stepped back, cracking the whip.  
The whip lashed down on his chest and he didn't even register the scream that escaped him. His mind was occupied with nothing but pain. Pain. Pain so intense he wanted to die.

He swayed from side to side as Simon whipped him relentlessly. He didn't understand how this could be anyone's idea of foreplay but Simon got off on watching people suffer. By the time Simon stopped, Louis was in a daze, limply dangling from the chains. He was sure that the wetness running down his spine was blood. Yet, Simon walked up behind him and pushed a dry finger into him. Simon's idea of opening someone up. A single tear trickled down his cheek as Simon thrust into him.

  
Not for the first time, he thought of escape. But he knew it wasn't possible. He'd tried it the first time he went home with a client. He hadn't come back here the next morning. Instead, he had headed towards his uncle's house, his uncle was a cop, but he hadn't even gone halfway when a car had pulled up beside him. He was driven back here and he was locked up in one of the tiny cellars for two weeks, only being let out once a day for some insane clients to take their frustrations out on. He still had nightmares about those times. He had nearly lost his mind in those two weeks. He used to have a bowl of soup and a glass of water once a day and that's about it. His cellar was his bedroom and unfortunately, his toilet as well.

  
Those two weeks were enough to stop him from ever trying to escape ever again. He learned that wherever he went, he would be watched. They were always watched. Now, tired and bleeding, he gave in and let the darkness envelope him. The next time he woke up, he found himself on the hard mattress in his room. His room wasn't really a room. It was smaller than a closet and had nothing beside the mattress he called a bed. There was an equally small bathroom attached.

  
Louis groaned as he sat up slowly. He looked at his mattress carefully. Yeah, he was bleeding. There was a fresh patch of blood on the mattress. He crawled out of his 'bed' and with a lot of difficulty, waddled into the bathroom and got under the shower. Louis flinched as the icy water hit the slashes on his back.

  
He leaned his forehead against the wall, and stood there shivering, watching the blood bring washed away. There was a lump in his throat the size of a golfball. The last time he had cried over his feelings was two years ago, when he still cared if he lived or died, when he still thought he'd escape someday. But later, he had accepted his fate and he just stopped crying unless he was being tortured. That was the only time he'd cry, when they would push him past his limits. Now, the tears that flowed down his face, merging with the water, had a different reason. The pain was worse than ever. Louis clutched at his chest as he slid to the bathroom floor, great heaving sobs wracking through his tiny frame.

  
It had been three years, two months and sixteen days since he had last seen Harry. Three days, two months and sixteen days since his life was normal, awesome even. Harry had always been his best friend. They'd been neighbors since they were two and four. They went to the same school. Even though Harry was two years younger, Louis made sure that none of his classmates picked on him, especially because Harry had been unlike most boys their age.

  
Later, when Louis turned thirteen, Louis' family moved to Doncaster. Yet, they had remained best friends. They met up whenever possible. They celebrated Christmas together, alternating between the two houses each year. At the age of fifteen, Harry had turned up at Louis' home, crying because he just realized he was gay and he was terrified of how people would treat him now. Louis had assured him that the people who mattered would stick with him. And then, Louis had surprised Harry by admitting that he was probably bisexual himself.

  
When Louis turned eighteen, he moved out and bought a flat in London. Harry changed schools and moved in with him. Less than a month later, Harry had confessed that he was in love with Louis. Louis had insisted that he was too young to say that and maybe he should take some time to reconsider. Truth was that Louis had had a major crush on him for as long as he could remember and now, he definitely loved him but he didn't want Harry to rush into anything. It would end with two broken hearts and a broken friendship if it didn't turn out the right way. That day, Louis had left for his university saying, "I'll meet you when I'm back, Hazza. Think about it."

  
Louis counted every day that went by without him returning home. Even after he lost hope, he still counted. Three years, two months and sixteen days later, he was still counting. And every night, before he fell asleep, he whispered "I love you too Hazza. I love you too."

  
*****

  
Harry sat in his living room, staring blankly at his bandaged arm. There was music playing in the background. He turned it off when one of his own songs started to play. He had been thinking about that morning's incident for hours. He hadn't seen Louis in three years and - Harry sighed - he didn't understand. He remembered the day Louis hadn't returned from uni. Harry had been worried sick, especially when he had realized that he hadn't taken his belongings. He had known something was wrong.

  
Harry had informed the cops and their families. There had been an intense investigation for about a year. A year that had been nothing short of hell for Harry. After a year of fruitless searching, they'd more or less given up, despite Harry's pleading.

**Flashback**  

  
"Harry, I want to find him too. He's my nephew. But you have to understand, we have no clues. We don't even know where to look. It's a big world, Harry."

  
"So, you're going to just _give up_? Just like that? Louis could be out there somewhere, waiting to be saved. He could be hurt, could be in pain, could be - _God_! You _can't_ give up!"

  
"We're not giving up, Harry. But we can't solely focus on this anymore. It's been a year and -"

  
"YES! A YEAR! Louis been waiting for a year! We need to find him Mr. Austin."

  
"Son, you need to think about Jay. I can't watch her hurting anymore."

  
"How-"

  
"Believing that her son is out there, in pain, probably being tortured -sorry- is worse for her to imagine than to just accept that he's gone."

  
"G-gone?"

  
"You can get used to death," he paused when Harry flinched, "Yeah, it's hard. You don't really get over it but you get used to it. You don't get used to knowing that your child is in pain somewhere. That's not something... You can't move on from that. You sure as hell can't live with that." Harry just stared at him.

He sighed.

  
"Harry, you know how much I care about Jay. I mean, when my brother walked out on her, it was horrible for her. I saw her through that. She's like a sister to me. I can't see her in that kind of pain -worse even- again. She has four kids to look after."

  
"But what about Lou?"

  
"There are so many cases that sound similar to this and I'm pretty sure one of them, at least, will lead us to him. This is exactly why we need to stop looking specifically at Louis' case. There are no clues there. We're running in circles. Look, son, we're keeping an eye out for him. We'll find him. I don't know when but I know it will be quicker this way."

  
Harry wanted to throw a tantrum, but he understood, sort of. He sighed and nodded, his eyes glued to the floor. He felt a heavy hand on his shoulder. "Harry. Look at me, son. I know it's horrible right now but you can't stop living. Louis wouldn't want that. No, listen. I'm not asking you to find someone else. I'm asking you to go on with your life. Don't put everything else on hold for this. I have heard you sing, Harry. Louis always said you'd be famous one day and turning down offers is not the way to get there."

  
Harry jerked his head up, wondering how he knew. "I heard you talking on the phone earlier. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to eavesdrop. But Harry, you need to do this. If nothing else, then do it for Louis. Imagine the amount of influence you'll have when you are famous, how many people would want to help you."  
Harry simply nodded. He didn't know if he could, though.

 

**Present Day**

  
To say that Harry had been stunned would be an understatement. There hadn't really been a single emotion he could pinpoint at that moment when he saw Louis, alive and well, in that tube. He was surprised, hurt, angry, relieved, confused...so many things at once.  
Most of all, Harry was confused. He had always believed that Louis had been kidnapped. Now, he wasn't so sure. Why would Louis run from him? Why would he be walking around town freely if he had been kidnapped? Why would he intentionally hurt Harry? But he did seem scared. None of it made sense.

  
Harry sighed. He shrugged on his coat, grabbed a scarf and a beanie and headed out. Guess it was time to do something.

  
****

  
Louis limped down the corridor, pushing a trolley. A guard walked ahead of him. He stopped outside a locked door, grabbed a plate, and waited for the guard to unlock it.  
"How ya doin', Tommo?" asked Stan, as he entered the room.

  
"Not good. Don't ask. You doin' okay?" replied Louis, talking fast cause they had so little time.

  
"Great, man. Fucking loved it today. Good client," he said, muttering a thanks to Louis when he handed him his plate. He noticed the look on Louis' face. "No! Not that! Client didn't wanna have sex is the thing. She asked a lot of questions though. I thought they already knew about how this place works. Don't they sign a contract or something?"

  
Louis paused on his way out, turning around slowly. "What d'ya mean...questions?"

  
"Like how we ended up here and stuff."

  
"Did she-"

  
"What the fuck is taking you so long, Tomlinson? I'm not going to wait forever. Get the fuck out!"

  
Louis started at that and ran out quickly. But he couldn't stop thinking about what Stan had said. Suddenly, one of Simon's cronies ran up to them, dragging another young boy with him. "This one is filling in for Tomlinson."

  
"Why?" the guard supervising Louis asked.  
"Simon wants him. He's livid."

  
Louis gulped, trying to wrack his brain for any mistake he might have made and came up blank. He had literally done nothing wrong since the previous day, when he returned late in the morning. He realized he was trembling as the man led him away. He only hoped he would return alive. He had yet to tell Harry that he loved him.

  
****

  
David Austin looked up when his partner, Laura, came running in. He raised an eyebrow when he noticed that she was just now pulling her hair up and she had make-up on. She rolled her eyes and muttered, "Shut up."

  
She sat down on her desk, facing him and exhaled sharply. David watched her. She looked tense but when she looked up at him, he noticed that her eyes were gleaming. He knew that look. "What did you find out?" he asked.

  
She stared at him for a while and looked away when she said, "I was with a prostitute this morning."

  
David was sure his eyes would pop out of their sockets. He spluttered. "You... What? A prostitute? And what does that have to do with anything?"

  
She tossed him a bottle of water, smirking at the look on his face. But then, her smile fell and she sighed. "I managed to make sure that one of their female clients missed her appointment time and I went in her stead. The guy was ecstatic when he realized that I didn't want to have sex."

  
She looked at him pointedly as she said the last part. "I asked a few questions and you won't believe what I found."

  
"Hit me."

  
"Turns out this guy, Stan, is the same Stanley who went missing two years back. And he said...his exact words were 'Yeah, there are many of us there. All of us were kidnapped individually and brought here. Not here exactly cause we moved twice since I was brought here. You can say we are brought to Simon. I thought you people were told all of this. Didn't you guys sign some contract?' Basically, he implied -"

  
"Wait! Wait! Sorry. Um... Did he mention any names? Did he mention a Louis? Or Tomlinson?"

  
She gave him a confused look and then, perused through her notes. "Uh... No. He didn't."

  
David slouched in his chair. Then, she exclaimed, "Wait! There is a Tommo. Does that count? He says, 'Tommo usually brings us lunch. Poor lad. Simon has a strange obsession with him. Got him a year before me. Loves to torture him.' And then, he goes on about something else."

  
"Shit!" David exclaimed, burying his head in his hands. Laura frowned as she watched him. "David, who is he?" she asked. David mumbled something incoherent and shook his head before lifting his head to look at her. He looked distraught. "Louis... He's my nephew. Went missing three years ago. Fuck! I don't know what... I really didn't expect this. I should've but I didn't."

  
Laura sighed as she slid off her desk and walked over to him. She was always awkward in such situations but she hesitantly put a hand on his shoulder and patted him in an attempt to comfort him. David groaned into his hands. "Laura, you are horrible at this... but I don't have the right to complain. I'm worse."

  
"Stop complaining, David. Now, this Louis, he's given us yet another reason to look into this. We have to get these kids out."

  
David sat up immediately. "Of course we have to. There is no question," he said at the same time as his phone started to ring. He fished it out of his pocket and answered.

Laura was concerned by the way his eyes seemed to grow wider and wider. Before he was even done with the phonecall, he was grabbing his car keys and rushing out. He skidded to a halt just outside the entrance. "What on earth are you waiting for? Hurry up!"

  
Laura wanted to snap at him but something told her that wouldn't be a good idea. She followed him out, yelling, "Where are we going?"

  
"To meet Harry. He says he's seen Louis and went to the bloody press with it. He could be in danger."

  
"Who the fuck is Harry?"

  
"Harry Styles."

  
"Who... Wait. WHAT the FUCK!"

  
****

  
Louis felt as if he was dreaming. He had to be dreaming. This couldn't be real. For one, he was seated in a wooden chair in front of a screen where a woman was introducing 'the current heartthrob Harry Styles' who would be performing next. Secondly, he was painfully aware of Simon's presence in the room, right behind him. Third, he was going to be killed, he was sure of it.

  
He was startled when Simon's hand came down on his shoulder at the same time as Harry's face appeared onscreen. Even then, he couldn't take his eyes off the screen. Harry looked older and not just in a way he should. He'd be nineteen now but somehow, he looked much older than that. Not physically but it was in the way he moved, the way he spoke, the way he carried himself. His innocent, little, Hazza had matured faster than time and that made his heart hurt a little.

  
"Well," Simon's voice boomed through the room. "I heard this little celebrity was following you yesterday. Care to share why?"  
Louis opened his mouth and closed it, unable to form words at the moment. Simon moved around the chair to stand in front of him and grabbed his jaw, forcing him to make eye contact.

  
"Don't bother lying, Louis. He knew your name. And if I'm not wrong, his songs talk about you. Now tell me Louis, who is he to you?"

  
"I don't - I don't kn-know -" Louis was cut off by a slap across his face. "I don't think you understand how furious I am right now, Louis," Simon snarled in his face.

  
Louis gulped. This was it. He would die today. The day he'd been dreading for three years now. He would die because no way in hell would he admit that Harry was his best friend. He would rather die than live with the guilt of giving these people a reason to harm Harry.

  
"I don't know," he said. "I don't know how he knows me. I bet I'm famous too, you know. I'm one of the 'kids who just vanished from the face of earth'. I bet we're all fam - AAAH!" Louis yelled as Simon grabbed his hair and pulled his head back. Hard. There was a knife resting on his cheek. Louis closed his eyes and whimpered softly.

  
"Now don't get cocky with me, Louis. Little lover boy went to the newspapers yesterday. And because you didn't bother telling me that he was following you, we are in danger of being found out. If we had found out earlier, we would've moved before the little bastard opened his mouth. So while my people see to it that this place is even harder to notice from the outside than usual, I'm going to spend my time making sure that you will never keep anything from me again. If you don't die, that is."


	2. Freedom

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello to anyone reading this. I hope you like this story. If you do, please leave Kudos so that I know you liked it. And you've got the time, do leave a comment. Comments motivate me to write, so...   
> Alright, I won't keep you longer. Happy reading!

"We are seriously going to meet Harry Styles?" asked Laura, for the hundredth time.   
David rolled his eyes. "God! Will you stop freaking out like a teenaged girl?" he said.

  
That put a frown on Laura's face. "Now, what is this about 'teenaged girls'? Everybody freaks out from time to time. Harry Styles is a celebrity. I don't understand how you're not freaking out."

  
"I've known him for a while now."

  
"You know him? Wow. Well, that explains it, doesn't it? That's why you're calm as a cucumber and I'm not. I bet you'd be freaking out too if you didn't know -"

  
"We're here!"

  
"You always cut me off mid sentence," Laura grumbled as she climbed out of the car.

  
They rushed up to Harry's door. David rang the doorbell a few times. There was no answer. He rang it again. Silence. "Will I have to break in?" asked Laura, a frown on her face. David stepped back and motioned for her to go ahead. "I don't exactly feel comfortable doing this, considering he's a celebrity, but.... David, the lock is broken!"

  
David frowned. He stepped around her and pushed on the door. It swung open easily and there was an eerie silence on the other side. It was deserted.

  
****

  
Harry groaned as he slowly regained consciousness. He blinked blearily. He wondered why there seemed to be a painfully bright light pointed at him. The last thing he remembered was letting someone into his house. Wait. Now that woke him up.

  
He jerked up but found that his movements were restrained. His eyes had adjusted to the brightness now and he looked down at the ropes that bound him to the wooden chair.

  
"He's awake," said a booming voice, startling Harry. When he looked around, there wasn't just one person there. Several muscled men stood in a circle around him. Most of them held rifles pointed at him.

  
Suddenly, he heard footsteps and from the darkness, a figure slowly emerged. Years later, he'd marvel at how fitting it was but at the moment, he was only curious. A well-dressed, middle aged man appeared in front of him. Behind him there were several muscled men and they seemed to be dragging someone along but the person was hidden from his view.

  
Harry brought his gaze back to the man's face. He had a sinister smirk on. "Hello, Harry," he greeted and his voice sent chills down Harry's spine.

  
"Wh-who are you? H-how..." he paused, realizing that asking him how he knew his name would be the stupidest question. _Perks of being famous_ , he thought. "What do you want from m-me?"

  
"I'm Simon Cowell. You can call me Simon," he replied with a smile. One of the men brought a chair for him to sit on and he sat down without so much as a glance at the man. That's when the person who was being dragged along came into view. Harry gasped as tears sprang to his eyes.

  
"Louis," he whispered. Louis was pushed to the ground beside Simon so that he was kneeling by the chair. His face and body was bruised and he looked thin. So thin. And he was naked except for the tattered pair of briefs he had on. It seemed to take a lot of effort but Louis raised his head to look at Harry. Sad blue eyes met forest green and Harry's world crashed down all around him.

  
"Harry, how do you know Louis?" asked the man, Simon.

  
Harry gulped, eyes fixed on Louis. He thought Louis had shook his head but he wasn't sure. "He's my best friend," he whispered, frowning.

  
"I don'- don't kn-know him," Louis said, immediately. Harry was bewildered because what? Did Louis just say that he didn't know him?

  
Simon chuckled as if it were the funniest thing he had ever heard. "Looks like we have a disagreement here," he said, and then, his face morphed into one of pure fury so fast Harry thought he'd get whiplash from it.

Harry watched horrified as Simon grabbed Louis by the hair and pulled so that he was facing him. Louis didn't so much as try to struggle. "You need to stop lying to me, slut! Apologize."

  
"Let him go! You're hurting him!" screamed Harry but he could be invisible for all the attention they paid him.

  
"I'm...n-not lyin'. I don't know him," mumbled Louis. That only served to anger Simon even further. Harry watched in horror as he pushed Louis' head towards his shoes.

"Apologize," he growled. Louis didn't respond at all.

  
"Have you forgotten your lessons, Louis?" he asked, his voice eerily calm. "No matter. We'll fuck you back to submission before you die."

  
That one sentence hit Harry so fast and so unexpectedly, he was left reeling. "What did you do to him?" he asked to the room at large. "What the fuck did you do to him?" he yelled, hysterical.

  
"A lot of things, Harry. We've had three years to experiment on him."

  
"No! I'll kill you! I'll fucking kill you, you monster!"

  
"I think you've got that the wrong way around," said Simon, so calm that if he hadn't just announced a death sentence. "Did you forget what happened before he arrived, Louis? Wanna tell him how well we fucked you earlier? How about I fuck you in front of this person you don't know, hmm?" he asked, turning to Louis. "No!" screamed Harry.

  
Louis' eyes widened for the briefest of moments, before he repeated, "I truly don't know him."

  
Simon's face twisted with rage. He motioned something at one of the men and he scurried away. "You'll never learn, will you, Louis?" he asked, grabbing Louis by the back of his neck and standing up so he took Louis with him as he stood.

  
The man who he'd motioned towards came back with a bundle in one arm and a bucket in the other. Harry craned his neck trying to see inside but all he could see is water.Simon pushed Louis so that he staggered forward, just ten steps away from Harry. 

"On your knees, slut?" Simon barked. Harry was stunned when Louis complied immediately. "This will teach you not to disrespect your masters," he said and abruptly, he grabbed the bucket and dumped its contents on Louis, who shrieked in surprise. It was ice-cold water. Harry noted that there were several ice blocks too.

  
Louis instantly started to shiver. Before he could even recover from the shock, there was a loud smack which drew a heart breaking wail from Louis. "STOP!" Harry yelled, as Simon started to cane Louis. "STOP, PLEASE! Please, please, just stop hurting him."

  
Simon did stop after a while but only to pick up a whip. He walked towards Louis menacingly, who was lying sideways on the ground and was barely conscious. Harry kept calling his name, trying to get him to respond but he didn't move at all. Simon stopped in his tracks and turned around.

  
"First things first, who were guarding the streets today?"

  
Around nine or ten men stepped forward.   
"How many of you did Louis pass on his way here?"

  
Four men stepped to the center. "The rest of you are dismissed. Grab lunch and then, get back to your posts." All the men, except four, filed out of the room.

  
Then, several things happened at once. Four shots rang out in the dark room. Harry clenched his eyes shut and screamed as loud as his throat would allow. Louis got up and rushed towards Harry.

  
****

  
"So, what? We don't tell anyone? Are you serious?" asked Laura, as she fiddled with the radio.

  
"You gonna rat on me?"

  
"Course not!"

  
David looked at her in surprise. "Why? I thought you were one of those 'take risks as long as you're are still playing by the rules' kind of people."

  
"Eyes on the road, David!" she retorted. "And I don't rat on people. But honestly, he's a celebrity. People will know."

  
"Yeah," David agreed. "but it will be a while before they know. And then, some more time before they realize how things are connected. Also, they don't have a very valuable information that we have."

  
"Right. We know where Louis is."

  
"Yeah."

  
"But why exactly are we doing this? I don't understand. Surely, we can let our colleagues know. We can't do this alone, David."

  
"I don't trust them."

  
Now it was Laura's turn to look at him in surprise. "What?"

  
David rolled his eyes. "It's not that I suspect any of them of anything but the more people that know about this, the faster this spreads. The faster it spreads, the faster they realize we're onto them and the faster they escape."

  
"Oh.. Okay."

  
"You don't have to do this if you don't want to. You will just have to shut up about it, though."

  
"No. Fucking. Way. I'm not letting you kick me out now. This is my case too, remember that."

  
"Alright, alright. Jeez, calm down! I was only giving you an out in case you wanted it."

  
"I don't. So, there..."

  
"Good," said David with a smile.

  
Laura hummed in response. "By the way, how's your wife doing? Mary, right?" she asked and immediately regretted it when she saw a flicker of pain in his expression but it was gone in a second.

  
"She's fine. Sweet as ever," he said. Laura thought she could detect a hint of bitterness in his tone but she didn't comment.

  
****

  
A pair of expensive golden boots and a pair of bare feet pounded down on the cemented floor. _I'm free at last,_ Louis thought as they ran down the deserted hallway. He snuck glances at Harry who was right beside him, struggling despite his long legs. _Clumsy Bambi,_ he thought fondly.

  
Harry couldn't believe it. They'd escaped? Really? It had all happened so fast that he was yet to register it all.

  
** Flashback **

  
Harry stared at the four dead bodies in shock. _Dead, dead, dead,_ was all he could think. Suddenly, there was a scuffling noise followed by a thud. When he looked up, Louis was standing in front of him and behind him, Simon was lying on the floor, unconscious.

  
"Knocked him o-out with the ch-chair," Louis explained, as he started working on the ropes that Harry was bound with.

  
He managed to undo the ropes impressively fast for someone who was trembling so much. "We have t-to...run, Hazza. Alright?" he said as he tossed the ropes aside.

  
Harry felt a familiar fluttering in his stomach at the use of the nickname. "What about those men? They were guards, right?" he asked.

  
"Remember S-Simon sent th-them for lu-unch?" Harry nodded. "N-normally, they go in batch- es but t-today, Simon's s-sent them all...at once. Th-the halls will be deserted."

  
Harry nodded. He noticed that Louis' lips were blue and his trembling was making it hard for him to speak. He desperately needed medical attention. "You know what?" Louis said suddenly. "W-we can l-lock them in the d-dining hall. Th-they have metal d-doors here. Will g-give us more time."

  
"Yeah.. Yeah. We should hurry though, Lou," said Harry, glancing at Simon in concern. Louis followed his gaze and nodded. "Yeah," he agreed and grabbed Harry's hand. "Let's go."

  
** End Flashback  **

  
Louis paused all of a sudden. Harry looked at him in surprise. "Lou," he whispered. "Hurry."  
"The oth-er slaves. S-so many...st-ill here," he gasped out.

  
"Lou, we'll come back for them. We don't have time. We need to go, Lou."

  
But Louis was reluctant. He clutched at his hair. "Stan! Gosh, Stan!"

  
Harry huffed and grabbed his arm, trying to get him to move but he wouldn't budge. Sighing, he cupped his cheek and cringed when Louis flinched away on instinct. "I promise. Lou, I promise we'll get them out, alright?"

  
Louis looked at him now. "Promise?"

  
"Promise. Now, let's go."

  
Louis nodded but he seemed weaker than before. His sudden surge of adrenaline was all used up. His teeth were chattering and when Harry felt his forehead, it was _hot_. So, he took off his coat and wrapped it around Louis and pulled him against himself so that he was supporting both of their weights and they took off again.

  
****

  
David had just got out of his car when he received a phone call. It was an unknown number. Laura got out of the car. "Who is it?" she asked.

  
"Unknown number," answered David.

  
"Put it on speaker."

  
"You want me to answer it?"

  
Laura shot him an incredulous look. "We're cops, David."

  
"Well, this is my personal number."

  
Laura rolled her eyes and answered the call for him. Before David could scold her, a very urgent "David!" was heard and the Two of them froze. Everyone knew that voice.

  
"Harry? Harry, where are you?"

  
"I have Louis with me, David! He... He is barely conscious. Shit! Come fast! Please. Or they'll find us."

  
"Calm down, Harry. You need to tell us the address," said David even as they climbed into the car once again.

  
"I don't even know where I am. Shit! I'm calling from a phone booth. Oh wait, I know where I am."

  
"Where?"

  
"Find a newspaper. I spotted Louis here yesterday. We'll be uh... There's a huge trashcan. We'll be hiding behind it, yeah? Hurry up, please."

  
"Alright. I know the place. On our way, Harry. Stay safe."

  
****

  
Harry rushed back to Louis, who was crouched behind the trashcan. He looked really pale and Harry was starting to get worried. "Lou? How bad is it?" he asked.

  
Louis didn't answer. Instead, he pressed closer to Harry and buried his face in his shirt. _Shit_ , Harry thought. _This doesn't look good_. 

  
Five minutes later, a car pulled up right in front of them and a woman stepped out. Harry gulped, pulling Louis closer and huddling as close to the trashcan as possible. But the woman was walking straight towards them. Harry was preparing to run but then, David stepped up beside her. Harry heaved a sigh of relief and stood up, pulling Louis with him.

  
"Louis!" gasped David as he rushed towards them. Harry quickly moved towards the car. "David, hurry! He needs to be taken to a hospital!" he shouted. Quickly, all of them huddled into the car.

  
"Missed them by a second," the woman said, as she glanced at the rearview mirror and sure enough, when Harry looked back, he saw some men stumble into the street. He heaved a sigh of relief as he realized that they had escaped. And that Louis was with him.

  
He looked down at the boy. Louis was curled up on his lap, his face tucked in the crook of Harry's neck and he was still trembling. Harry hugged him closer.

There was so much he wanted to tell Louis, so many conversations he's been waiting to have but now that he was here, Harry realized that there was nothing he wanted more than to just hold him close.


	3. Chained

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and kudos are always welcome!

Everything hurts. He feels as if he's being burned alive. There's so much pain. In his arms, in his head, in his feet, his back, everywhere.

  
He thought he could hear voices. What's happening? He wondered. He couldn't remember. If there are voices there are people. And where there are people, there's pain. But he was already hurting so bad. He couldn't take it anymore.

  
Someone placed a hand on his shoulder. Louis curled in on himself. "Please," he begged. "I'm tired. Please, don't hurt me."

  
"Lou?" the person said. And the person sounded so sad. Why was he sad? And why did he...he sounded like Harry. Harry.   
Then, it all came back to him. _Did we make it out? Did Harry make it out?_ He gasped and opened his eyes. The lights were painful against his eyes. Louis whined and brought up his arm to cover his eyes with.

  
"Oh! I'm sorry, Lou. I'll... I'll turn out the overhead lights... There. Is this better, Lou?" asked Harry. _Gosh, Haz, your voice is too loud right now. My head hurts. But I love you._

  
He opened his eyes just a crack and yeah, it was better. There was only warm yellow light shining on the other side of the room. He was in this really comfortable bed, lying on his side, possibly because his back is on fire.

Harry was standing over him, looking concerned. And beautiful. When he saw Louis open his eyes, he came and sat down on the chair beside the bed.

  
"How are you feeling, Lou?" he asked.   
"Not good," replied Louis, with a grimace.   
Harry nodded. He moved his hand as if he wanted to touch Louis but then, he froze and put it back down. Louis noticed the movement. _I love you, you idiot._

  
"How long was I out?"

  
"Few hours. It's eight p.m. Are you hungry?"

  
"No. Just tired. You've had dinner?"

  
"Yeah. David threatened to force-feed me."

  
"Where are we? Because this seems too nice to be a hospital..." asked Louis, eyeing the medicine and syringes on the nightstand.

  
"Uh... We didn't take you to the hospital. We had the doctor see you here, at my home. Because...well, David said I couldn't come with you...if you went to the hospital. Or people would lose their shit. And uh... David was wondering if we should tell your mum. I told him we should ask you first. She'd given up hope, so at least one of you should be ready before you meet, yeah? To be -"

  
Louis stopped his monologue by placing a hand over his. Louis can tell he surprised Harry by the way he looked down at their hands and smiled hesitantly.

  
"I love you, Haz."

  
Harry's head snapped up so fast it had to be painful, his eyes wide in shock. But he quickly schooled his features to a neutral expression. "Yeah... Yeah... Love ya too, Louis."

  
"No, Harry. Not like that. I mean it. I love you."

  
Harry's eyes started to well up and okay, now Louis was scared. He hadn't meant to say it aloud at first but it was out there already, so why take it back? But right now, he couldn't read Harry's expression. Belatedly, he realized that it had been three years. Harry was a celebrity now. Of course, he'd have moved on. He had no reason to hold on to this. They weren't even dating when Louis had been kidnapped. "I'm sorry... I should've -"

  
"Lou! You mean it? You... _love_ me?"

  
Louis hesitated. "Y-yeah... I do. And I've been waiting to tell you since..." he stopped, his throat clogged with emotion.

  
****

  
Harry was stunned. The confession came at a time he wasn't even close to dreaming of it. Louis had stopped whatever he was trying to say but Harry understood and it made him so angry. And it broke him at the same time.

  
"I do still love you, Louis. I couldn't stop if I wanted to," he admitted. It seemed to be the right thing to say because Louis relaxed considerably and smiled up at him.

  
"Thank God! I... I want to kiss you so bad right now but...but I don't think I can."

  
Harry watched as his bottom lip wobbled and his eyes filled up with tears. He looked so shattered. A sob seemed to escape him unexpectedly and he turned his face into the pillow as if he were ashamed of something. Harry frowned. He had nothing to be ashamed of.

  
Harry wanted nothing more than to hold him and comfort him but he had a feeling that it wouldn't be a welcome gesture. So, he settled for words.

  
"Hey, Lou... It's alright. I'll wait for you. I'll wait as long as it takes. I won't stop loving you, Lou. I couldn't even if I wanted to," he said and Louis turned to face him, his forehead creased, "And I don't want to."

  
Harry knew it was the right thing to say because Louis gave him a watery smile. "You're so grown up."

  
Harry smiled. "It's been a while."

  
"I like your hair like this. It's pretty," said Louis, making Harry blush.

  
"Thanks, Lou."

  
"So, you're a celebrity now, then?"

  
"Yeah..." Harry replied, blushing even more.   
Louis cupped his cheek and he leaned into the touch. "It's what I wanted for you, Haz."

  
"I know."

  
Louis dropped his hand from his face to grab Harry's hand instead. Harry eyed their intertwined hands. Louis tiny hand against his larger one. He liked it. When he looked up at Louis, he realized that he was struggling to keep his eyes open.

  
"Sing me a song, Harry Styles," he requested with a tired smile.

  
And how could Harry refuse? He pulled his chair closer and put his other hand over their intertwined hands. "Alright. Uh... There's this song I wrote long time back but I never released it. Wanted you to play the piano for me."

  
Louis chuckled and the sound was music to Harry's ears. "I am a terrible pianist, Styles."

  
Harry's heart skipped a beat. "You. Are a terrible liar, Tomlinson."

  
Louis grinned at him. "Let's hear it, then."

  
****

  
_If I could fly_

_I'd be coming right back home to you_

_I think I might_

_Give up everything, just ask me to..._




Louis' couldn't keep his eyes open no matter how hard he tried. His body was exhausted. He gave in with a sigh, drifting in and out of wakefulness as Harry's deep voice washed over him.

  
For the first time in three years, he felt something he hadn't felt for a while. He felt at home.

  
****

  
David was just dozing off when the lights in his shared office were switched on and then, there was a shout. He cursed as he nearly fell out of his chair.

  
"David! You scared me! What are doing here? It's midnight," asked Laura.

  
David opened his eyes and raised an eyebrow at her. "I could ask you the same question," he said.

  
Laura hesitated. "I asked first," she replied after a while.

  
"Needed to get away from Ma...home."

  
Laura noticed that he wanted to say Mary but she pretended she didn't hear. "What about you? Why are you here?"

  
"Couldn't sleep," she answered. David noticed that she's been off since earlier that day, when they'd interrogated Harry about everything that had happened.

  
"Are you alright?"

  
"Hmm? Yeah! Yeah, I'm... I'm fine."

  
David didn't believe her but he hardly had the right to call her out on it. He was doing the same, wasn't he?

  
"So... Simon's left the country," said Laura.

  
"Yeah," replied David, although it wasn't a question. "I don't understand. Didn't the Stanley guy say there were about sixty or so of them? How do they smuggle all of them out of the country?"

  
"Almost a hundred, he'd said. It's simple actually. They have a lot of guards and each of them take a few of the kids with them. They board different flights and fly to the same destination through different routes. These...prostitutes are dressed as normally as possible for the journey and they're not allowed to speak to anyone. The guards speak for them. Apart from that, they look like normal everyday passengers, especially when there are both boys and girls. More often than not, they go unnoticed."

  
David stared at Laura. Her monologue was highly disconcerting, especially because she was actually cleaning up her desk as she spoke, as if she was talking about the weather. "First of all, I'll never be able to relax on a flight ever again. Secondly, why weren't we taught this? Third, how do you know all of this?"

  
Laura paused her cleaning. "We weren't taught because people hadn't figured it out back then. They're only just figuring it out."  
His heart was beating a mile a second as he stared at Laura's back. She'd started cleaning again.

  
****

  
Harry woke up with a stiff neck. He groaned as he realized that he'd fallen asleep on the chair, with his head on the bed and his hand still clutched in Louis'. Harry slowly pulled his hand out and stood up to stretch.

  
Yawning, he felt Louis' forehead who frowned in his sleep. It wasn't as hot as the day before but it was still warmer than normal. He picked up the thermometer and ran a hand through Louis' hair to wake him up. The reaction was immediate. Louis' hand shot up to clutch his own. He scrunched his eyes shut and whimpered. "I'm sorry, sir. Please! I'm sorry. I won't be late again."

  
Harry snatched his hand away and stumbled backward in shock. He knew that Louis' been through shit but hearing the evidence of it was painful beyond measure.

  
Apparently, he'd woken Louis up when he tore his hand away from him. Louis opened his eyes and blinked lazily up at him. He seemed to have forgotten whatever nightmare he had been stuck in because his expression was much more relaxed. As relaxed as he could be while still being in pain.

  
"Hey," he mumbled, rubbing at his eyes.   
"Good morning... Uh, I have to take your temperature," said Harry.

  
"Oh, alright." Louis tried to sit up and before Harry could tell him to stop, he groaned and fell back on his side.

  
"That hurts," he whined.

  
"Yeah. The doctor said it would hurt to move for a while. It's why you're not lying on your back," Harry said, as he placed the thermometer in his mouth, "Your back is in ribbons."

  
Louis mumbled something incoherent around the thermometer. Harry rolled his eyes and told him that he hadn't understood a word. When Louis moved to remove the thermometer, Harry swatted his hand away.

  
After a minute, Harry removed the thermometer and Louis grimaced as he said, "My back is on fire."

  
"Do you want painkillers?"

  
"Please."

  
Harry sighed. "A 'yes' would suffice. I don't mind if order me around, just... just don't plead, yeah? It's not like you."

  
"I'm not the same as I used to be," Louis replied.

  
Harry didn't respond. He simply handed him the medicine and helped him wash it down with water. "Do you need anything else? Wanna go to the washroom? Anything?"

  
"No."

  
"Okay. I'll just go freshen up and bring us breakfast, yeah? Is that alright?"

  
"Yeah."

  
As soon as Harry stepped out of the room, Louis gritted his teeth against the pain and got out of bed, shivering as he moved away from the covers. Slowly, he dragged himself to the bathroom. He wanted to shower and he knew that if he'd told Harry, he'd have tried to help him shower and he didn't want that. He needed the time alone.

  
The bathroom was huge. "Gotten rich, Hazza," he muttered with a soft smile. He was really happy for Harry but at the same time, he couldn't help but be upset that he didn't get to see it all happen. He should have been there when Harry recorded his first song, released his first album, performed at his first concert, bought his first proper house. Instead, he was... Well!

  
As he passed the mirror, he paused. He could hardly recognize himself. His eyes were sunken, his cheeks hollow, his collarbones were jutting out scarily. He sighed and moved away from the mirror. His torso was wrapped almost entirely in white gauge. He unwrapped them, rolled them up and placed them on the counter.

  
Louis undressed quickly, which isn't saying much as he was dressed only in a pair of clean boxers. Absently, he wondered who had changed him and he marveled at how three years back he would have been mortified but now, he'd grown accustomed to nudity.

  
Getting under the shower, he adjusted it so that the water was just comfortably warm. As the warm water hit him, his eyes welled up. The water stung the wounds on his back but how long had it been since he's had hot water to bathe with? Too fucking long was the answer. Without his permission, his mind flashed back to the previous day and he shuddered.

  
Placing his palms on the cold tile, he leaned against the wall. "Stop it! Stop fucking thinking about it!" he scolded himself. He was so frustrated that he didn't realize when he swung his arm back and punched the wall. Pain shot up his arm and he whimpered, cradling it to his chest. Hot tears trailed down his cheeks as he remembered.

  
_"This is where you belong, slut."_

  
_"C'mon Tomlinson. Open wide."_

  
_"Please, stop! Please! I can't -mmmph."_

  
_"I bet you were Styles' personal whore,_ _weren't you? "_

  
_"Don't know him. I don't! "_

  
_"Fucking liar! This is all you're good for, sucking dick and getting fucked."_

  
Louis groaned and banged his head off the wall, still cradling his arm.

  
"Louis, the chef cooked up a lovely - oh! Louis?"

  
Louis turned sharply towards the door. He didn't answer.

  
"Lou, are you taking a shower? Why didn't you call me? How did you get to the bathroom?"

  
Louis clapped a hand over his mouth, stifling his sobs. _Go away Harry, please. Just go away._ There was a knock at the bathroom door. "Lou?"

  
Harry's knocking got more insistent when Louis didn't respond for a long time. Louis didn't want to upset Harry. He didn't. He just didn't want him to know that he's crying. Because that will lead to questions he doesn't want to answer.

  
"You've left the door unlocked. I'm coming in."

  
"No!" Louis cried out, horrified as the door swung open. Harry stepped in, looking terrified, and the moment he caught sight of Louis' face, his expression turned into one of understanding.

  
Quietly, he fished his phone out of his pocket and placed it on the counter and then, he stepped under the shower. Fully clothed. Louis looked at him, incredulous.

  
"Can I hug you, love?"

  
It was such a Harry thing to say that it shouldn't have surprised him. It did, though, because Harry didn't ask any uncomfortable question, didn't decide to play doctor. He just accepted that Louis was upset and offered comfort the only way he could. And he asked permission. He gave him the right to refuse. The right to say 'no'. It was this simple thing that did it, the knowledge that he had a choice and that his choice would be respected.

  
Louis lurched forward and let Harry cocoon him in his arms. He felt Harry move to turn off the shower, mumbling "You're already sick" and Louis couldn't be more thankful for this little angel. They stayed like that for a long time, Harry simply holding him as he cried messily into his drenched T-shirt. .It should have been awkward, with Harry fully dressed and Louis nude, but it wasn't. Louis was too used to it and Harry too focused on the sorrow in Louis' face.

  
When Louis felt like he couldn't shed another tear, he tilted his head up to look at Harry. Harry gave him a sad smile. "Better?" he asked.

  
"A little," Louis mumbled.

  
"You hurt yourself."

  
Louis looked down at his hand which lay on Harry's chest. There was an ugly bruise forming on his knuckles. "I'm sorry," he whispered. Louis stiffened when he realized what he'd just done. Apologizing for bruises and blemishes was another thing he had to stop doing.

  
Harry didn't comment on it. "Want me to wash your hair?" he offered.

  
Louis hesitated for a second. "O-okay, just..."

  
"Just?"

  
"Uh... Can I be facing you?" he asked.

  
A pained expression crossed Harry's face, before he nodded. "Yeah, of course."

  
Harry slowly held his arms and moved them so Louis had his arms wrapped around his waist. He reached over Louis' head for the shampoo. Louis tensed when he felt the hands in his hair, his mind preparing for pain. Harry nudged his chin up with the back of one hand. Louis relaxed as their eyes met. _He's not here. It's Harry. It's Harry._

  
Harry did a quick job of washing his hair, obviously aware that Louis wasn't yet comfortable enough with it. He dried him off, wrapped up his bandages and led him into the bedroom, wrapped in a towel. Having helped Louis into a new pair of boxers and tucked him into bed, he left the room.

  
When he returned a minute later, he'd changed out of his wet clothes. Louis was thankful that he had remained clothed in front of him. While he didn't have any qualms about people seeing him naked, he was certainly not keen on seeing any naked bodies anytime soon.

  
"Breakfast time!" he announced cheerfully as he walked in, as though he hadn't walked into his best friend losing it in the bathroom just minutes ago.

  
****

  
Far away, in a cozy house, a middle-aged woman sighed as she took in the mess that was her home. "Girls! Clean up the mess you've made! Right now!"

  
A chorus of petulant whining and groaning greeted her. She shook her head at their childishness. "You know I'm not letting any of you off the hook. C'mon, get to it," she ordered as she started to wipe what looked like melted chocolate from a window. As she cleaned, her eyes fell on the picture right beside the window and she smiled, sadly.

  
"Don't know why I'm complaining. Your sisters aren't worse than you were, love," she confessed with a light chuckle. "Hope you're not giving the angels too much trouble, hmm?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was so cringey, OMG. I feel like I went overboard with the fluff. Is it too much cheesiness? Please, tell me, someone.   
> Also, I was so confused which song to use. I was going with "I want to write you a song" and I changed it last minute. Kill me.


	4. Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning : Graphic rape scene. I'm not sure if it can be considered graphic actually but be careful what you read.

_He's fine. Calm down. He's okay._ Liam was driving way beyond the speed limit but he couldn't bring himself to care. His friend wasn't answering his calls and he was worried, really fucking worried.

  
Of course, his best friend was a famous person and had too many places to be at once but he'd never been as busy as to ignore Liam's calls 21 times. Liam had been trying to reach him since the previous day.

He'd tried his home, his cellphone, his assistant, his manager and no one had seen him all day.

  
What alarmed Liam was the article he'd read online. Liam had known Louis back when he went missing. They hadn't been close. To be honest, they never really spoke much, except when Liam went to their apartment to meet Harry.

  
Back then, it had bothered him quite a bit that while Harry was his best friend, he'd always be second to Louis for Harry. But as they grew up, he realized that there's so much more to this 'friendship' and he learned to appreciate his position in Harry's life.

  
The moment Liam had seen the article though, he'd known it was the wrong thing to do. He'd read it only this morning though, after Harry had ignored his calls and Liam decided that he should check online for any spottings of Harry. Instead, he'd found the article. Which is why he was here right now, driving all the way to Harry's place.

  
He swore to himself that if this ended up being a false alarm, he'd strangle Harry with his own bare hands. "Idiot," he muttered.

  
****

  
"So, Simon's still in London?" Harry clarified.

  
"Yes, we only figured it out this morning after Laura gave me some...um...detailed information about how smuggling works," said David, his gaze flicking to Louis, who was curled up tight against Harry. "According to Laura, there should have been several young boys and girls flying out that day but when we checked there weren't. That was the first red flag. And then, when we checked with our person overseas, he confirmed that Simon never landed there. Of course, there's more but I won't bother you with all the technical stuff." Louis hid his face against Harry's jumper when he realized he was being watched.

  
Although Louis had always been close to David, he was a little uncomfortable today. It was just the knowledge that his uncle knew what happened, that he'd been a prostitute for three years now, that made him ashamed.

  
Also, he'd followed Harry out in his boxers and had stayed in David and Laura's presence for all of seven minutes before he realized that he should probably be dressed a little more since it was cold and also, Laura was practically a stranger and that he should go and put some clothes on. Then, he realized that he didn't have clothes of his own and didn't know where Harry kept his. Louis just felt out of place.

  
So, he clung to Harry, both for warmth and the sense of security.

  
"Do you think we should move?" Harry asked. Louis raised his head to look at him. "Move?" he whispered.

  
"Yeah... I've got a place in LA. If Simon is here, we should probably leave, right? It was the original plan till we heard that Simon was flying out."

  
"No. Although Simon never landed in the original location, it is still possible that he moved them elsewhere. We are not entirely sure. We suggest you stay here. We have fixed your door, set up alarms and upped your security. This place should be safe. And if it's not too much to ask, Louis might be help us out a little," Laura suggested.

  
Louis felt Harry stiffen and knew he would object even before he opened his mouth. "No! Louis is done. I don't want -"

  
Louis cut him off. "I'd like to help, please. I want to."

  
"Lou..."

  
"I'm sorry," Louis said, out of habit, trying to curl up as much as possible. "But I want to. Stan is still in there."

  
"You know Stanley?" Laura asked suddenly. Harry looked between Laura and Louis, feeling lost.

  
Louis frowned as he looked at her. "Stanley? Well, that must be his full name, yeah. How do you know him?"

  
"I met him just yesterday actually," she replied, with a smile.

  
"You're the client who booked him and didn't want to fuck?" Louis asked. Immediately, both Harry and David cringed. "I'm sorry," he apologized again.

  
"I didn't book him actually -"

  
Before Laura could finish, the door to Harry's house was flung open and Harry and Louis froze momentarily while David and Laura jumped to their feet.

  
"Harry! Oh shit, sorry, it's only me! Don't shoot me, for god's sake!" cried the intruder.

  
"Liam!"

  
Liam turned to Harry while David and Laura put away their revolvers and then, his eyes fell on Louis who was still curled up against Harry. "Louis?"

  
****

  
Louis stared out of the window in his room. From here, he could still hear the faint chatter in the kitchen. Harry and Liam were messing about. Well, they said they were making dinner but they seemed to be having way too much fun. Louis had excused himself fifteen minutes back under the pretense of being tired. He _was_ tired. A little.

  
He opened the window and sat on the window sill, smiling a little as the breeze hit his face. It was quiet here...more or less. He didn't mind the sound of laughter coming from the kitchen. It was comforting, to say the least. It was home.

  
Home... Louis wondered how his mother would react to seeing him again. In the past three years, he'd played out several scenarios in his head. In all of them, he'd imagined his mum greeting him with open arms and his little sisters all crowding around him, happy to have their brother back.

  
Now, though, he wasn't so sure. How would his mum feel, knowing all that he had done in these few years? Would she be able to look him in the eye? Or would she be disgusted?   
Harry hadn't asked him if he wanted to go home and see his family? He did drop hints though, telling him how much Lottie had grown and how Fizzy had started to sound so much like me and how lovely it would be to watch their faces when they'd see their brother again.

  
Honestly, Louis wasn't ready and he appreciated the fact that Harry seemed to realize that. Harry was an absolute angel, taking care of him like a proper nurse, holding his hand when the doctor came to check on him this afternoon. It was still a little surreal. He couldn't quite believe that he was really free and with Harry and Harry still loved him and that they'd confessed their feelings already.

  
Sometimes, he wondered if he had rushed into the confession but then, he thought of the three years he spent regretting the fact that he hadn't confessed his feelings.   
Everything was turning out so brilliantly that Louis couldn't help but think that it was all too perfect, too good to be true.

  
He was Louis Tomlinson. Good things didn't come to him so easily. That was a fact. And it scared him. Yeah, he was happy and yeah, he was free but at what price?

  
****

  
"I need to buy clothes for Louis," Harry said, as they were setting up the dining room table for dinner.

  
"What happened to his?" asked Liam. Harry turned around and gave him a look.

  
"Oh! Right," Liam exclaimed, as he remembered just where Louis had been all these years. They worked in silence for a minute before Harry coughed and spoke softly. "He told me he loves me."

  
Liam put the plates he was holding down on the table and turned to face him fully. "That was fast," he commented, earning him a glare from Harry, who replied, "He waited three years."

  
Liam's eyes widened and he looked away, scratching at his forehead with a thumb. "Oh... I didn't realize the feelings were mutual all this time."

  
Harry nodded, playing absentmindedly with a spoon. "Me neither," he said, a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips.

  
"I would have expected you to be happier though."

  
"I _am_ happy! It's just..." Harry paused and sighed. "All these years, I kept making a list of things I'd have to tell Louis once I met him again. But now that he's here...I realize how selfish that would be, because he might be here physically but he's not really here. He's still stuck somewhere in a place where he isn't allowed any happiness. His smiles are more sad than happy...and I wish- I wish I could take away the pain, Li, but I know I can't and it hurts me so much."

  
Liam placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "You can't solve everything Harry. You got him out there. You are taking care of him right now and that's the most you can do. But remember, Harry, it gets better. It always gets better."

  
"I didn't really get him out of there, you know," said Harry sheepishly.

  
Liam smacked the side of his head in a playful gesture. "From what you've told me about your escape, he wouldn't have had the balls to escape if _you_ hadn't been at stake. So, yeah, you did get him out of there, indirectly."

  
****

  
_"...I'm going to spend my time making sure that you will never keep anything from me again. If you don't die, that is."_

  
_Louis was scared. He was so scared. But he couldn't tell him what Harry meant to him. Couldn't let them know just how far Harry might go to save him. He couldn't get Harry killed. So, he kept his mouth shut and refused to even scream when Simon grabbed him my his hair, dragged him off the chair and pushed him down to his knees. "Down," he yelled and Louis bent over to press his cheek to the floor, his silent tears trailing down his cheeks and dripping onto the cemented floor._

  
_Louis hated himself just a little more everytime he obeyed them like a well-trained dog and this time was no different. As Simon finished with him and tossed him to the others, Louis wept for the little boy who had promised his mother that he'd take care of her and his sisters for the rest of his life. For the kid who had a witty retort for anyone who tried to bully him. For the teenager who fell in love with a beautiful boy but never confessed because he thought he had all the time in the world. For the lively young man who thought he was invincible only to be proven so, so wrong._

  
_They were more rough with him than they ever had been today. He felt like he was being torn apart. His insides burned with the wounds they were inflicting and the destructive fire of self-hatred._

  
_"You think you have the right to lie to your masters, whore?" they snarled at him._

  
_"Tell us how the boy knows you and maybe we'll end this sooner," they said._

  
_"I bet he doesn't have much to say," they laughed, as they abused him. "He likes this."_

  
_"This is where you belong, slut," they slurred, drunk with power as they destroyed him slowly._

  
_"C'mon Tomlinson. Open wide," they said, as Louis choked on a cock that was shoved down his throat unexpectedly._

  
_He pushed at their thighs, trying to breathe."Please, stop! Please! I can't -mmmph."_

  
_"I bet you were Styles' personal whore, weren't you?" they asked him._

  
_He wanted to scream and tell them how wrong they were. But he couldn't tell them. He couldn't. Because he fell in love with this beautiful boy when he was only so young and if loving this beautiful boy meant he had to die in his stead, so be it. "Don't know him. I don't!" he yelled, with as much conviction as he could muster._

  
_"Fucking liar! This is all you're good for, sucking dick and getting fucked," they said, and pounded into him with renewed aggression._

  
_It was an hour later that they dragged him to his feet and to another room. Simon walked in front of him. He wasn't very aware of what was happening. They shoved him to his knees beside Simon's chair. He looked up and found his gaze land on the most beautiful shade of green he had seen in three years._

  
****

  
"You sure you're ready for this," asked Harry, as he pulled into the driveway.

  
Louis looked down at his clasped hands and bit the inside of his cheek, breathing in deeply and looking out of the window before letting out a tired sigh. "It has to be done," he said.

  
There was silence for a while. He could feel Harry's gaze boring into the side of his head.

"What?" he asked, turning to face him.

  
"They're not going to judge you, Lou? They are your family," replied Harry, his gaze unwavering.

  
Louis held his gaze for a while before looking away and opening his car door to step out. He heard Harry's door open and close and then, there were footsteps following his own. He knew Harry had something to say even before he called out, "Lou?"

  
Louis stopped walking and clenched his fists when Harry's hand landed on his shoulders. "You don't have to pretend this is easy, Lou. I know it's not. We can do this some other time. When you are ready. Say the word, and I'll take you back home."

  
Louis turned to look at him.

  
_Home_ , he'd said.

  
He was tempted to agree and run back to the car for a moment but the front door opened all of a sudden and just like that, he was left with no options.

  
Both Harry and Louis were frozen in their spots when Johannah stepped out of the house yelling at Lottie to take care of her siblings. She closed the front door and turned around.

  
Louis' breath hitched when he spotted the serene smile on her face. He wanted to run away and never return. When he noticed the way her smile slowly gave way to shock and pain, he wished he hadn't asked Harry to bring him here at all.

  
How stupid of him to believe that his mother would have held on to his memory. How stupid of him to think she wouldn't have moved on by now. How stupid of him to expect too much from the universe even after the universe proved to him just how much it hated him.

  
"Louis?" she croaked through her clogged throat. She looked from him to Harry to him and back to Harry. "What is this?" she screamed at Harry while pointing at Louis. "H-how...? He was dead. Louis was dead, wasn't he? He was with the angels! He wasn't.... Oh god, no!"

  
Harry rushed to her as she broke down crying. Louis slowly backed away from them, realizing with horror just how much of a mistake this was. He ran a hand across his eyes. He hadn't even realized he was crying. It didn't matter anyway. He turned around and ran, gritting his teeth as all the healing he'd done in the past week came undone and he was left with nothing but pain, inside and out. He could hear Harry's screaming after him but he refused to look back. He couldn't look back. He kept running.

  
_She thought I was dead. She_ wishes _I was dead._

  
****

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I joined university. Med school! I'm so excited! Got a lovely roommate and met another larrie for the first time. She's in the room beside me.


	5. Promise?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, comments and kudos are appreciated. And please, if you've got the time, do comment because that's what keeps me going.

Louis watched the children as they ran around the park. It reminded him of childhood and innocence. Back when he was free, he would always come here when he was upset or was feeling unsettled about something. It always calmed him. Now, the innocence of the little children seemed to mock him.

  
Louis pulled his knees up to his chest and leaned back against the tree, the cold wind hitting his face in a way that should have caused discomfort but didn't. He'd been in captivity long enough to appreciate freedom. Yet, somehow, he didn't feel free.

  
He heard footsteps behind him. He wasn't surprised. Louis knew that Harry would follow him. "Maybe don't do that again, yeah? It's not completely safe for you to be alone in public yet."

  
"You should've stayed with mum. She needs someone right now," Louis said, without turning to look at Harry.

  
Harry simply plopped down beside him. "You need someone too, Lou," he said, softly. "And Lottie is with her."

  
Louis nodded because he didn't know what to say. They sat in awkward silence for a few minutes. Harry cleared his throat and started playing with the grass. He placed his coat on Louis' shoulders when he noticed him shiver despite his warm clothes and then, he went back to playing with the grass.

  
"I'm sorry that I don't understand," he said suddenly, startling Louis. Louis turned to look at him. Harry was gazing back with a terrible sadness in his eyes.

  
"What?" Louis asked, because he had no clue what Harry was talking about.

  
Harry sighed, pulling up his knees to mimic Louis' position and tilted his face up towards the sky. Louis' gaze softened as he watched the way Harry's lashes touched his cheeks as he squinted against the sun.

  
"I don't know what you've been through, Lou. I know it was worse than I can imagine. But that's all I know. So, I can't pretend I understand how you feel. I don't. I don't know anything and I don't know how to help you. I wish I could, Lou," he said, turning back to face Louis as he said the last sentence.   
Louis gulped and looked away. "You can't help me."

  
"I know."

  
"No one can."

  
****

  
"That's quite a bruise," Laura commented as she climbed into the car. David grunted in reply.

  
"You know, you keep coming to work with all these bruises and you never explain," she said.

  
David chuckled as he started the car. It didn't sound humorous at all. "Comes with the job, doesn't it? You should know," he replied.

  
"Yeah, but what's strange is that I work with you all the time and I have never seen you acquire those bruises. Care to explain?" she countered.

  
"I don't owe you an explanation," David snapped, startling Laura. His expression turned apologetic immediately. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be rude."

  
"No. No! That's alright. It was rude of me to intrude."

  
David didn't reply. Laura looked out of the window. There was something amiss here. And she intended to find out.

  
****

  
Louis sat across from his mother. Harry sat beside him, holding his hand. Lottie sat beside her mother. Out of the corner of his eyes, Harry could see the other girls peeking into the living room but they didn't dare enter and find out who this handsome stranger was who'd arrived with their goofy friend, Harry. It seemed strange now to Harry that the girls knew him so much better than they knew Louis.

  
Jay was trembling as she gazed at her son. Lottie looked pretty shaken up herself but she seemed more happy than sad. She probably didn't realize what Louis being alive meant. Johannah did.

  
"Where were you?" she asked, at last. Louis gulped and looked at Harry. Harry simply nodded at him and squeezed his hand.   
Taking a deep breath, Louis opened his mouth to speak but then, closed it. He looked at Lottie with a frown and then, at the girls peeking into the room.

  
Lottie seemed to get the message because she stood up and yelled at her sisters to get inside. However, instead of leaving the room, she turned around and said, "I'm not leaving if that's what you expected, Lou. I might be fifteen but I understand plenty."

  
Leaving no room for argument, she sat down again. Harry glanced at Jay, wondering if she'd object but she didn't seem bothered. Her gaze was still fixed on Louis.

  
"I was in a brothel," Louis blurted out. A choked sort of noise escaped Jay while Lottie took in a sharp breath. Harry felt his own chest constrict painfully.

  
"You w-wanted to be there, didn't you? Tell me you did, love," Johannah begged, so upset at the prospect of what might have happened that she was ready to accept anything as long as it meant that her son wasn't hurt.

  
Harry noticed how Louis' face scrunched up in a grimace. He shook his head slowly. "I don't like lying to you, mum. I can't tell you that," he said and he sounded so much like an innocent child that Harry had to look away to blink back his tears.

  
Johannah was sobbing again. "No!" she gasped. "No, no, no! This can't be true!" she said, almost hysterical.

  
"Mum!" Lottie spoke up, "He's alive. Lou is alive and he's here and that's a good thing."  
Jay pushed away her hand and glared at her.

"No! You don't understand! Do you understand what it means that he's alive? You don't. He was in a brothel, he didn't want to be there! He was probably raped! M-my baby was r-raped..."

  
Harry saw Louis flinch hard. Lottie was frozen in place, her eyes wide as she stared at her mother. Harry was worried that Jay's words had shocked her too much until she spoke again.

  
"Do you even hear yourself mum? You think I don't know that? I've always known it. While you had let yourself believe that your son is dead, I knew believed that my brother was alive and not well. And I accepted that and everything I knew it meant. I also accepted the responsibility of keeping everyone sane while you mourned your son who was still alive. I know it's hard to accept but Lou survived that. Him being alive right now is a huge fucking deal. So stop making everything about yourself because my brother is here right now. He's been through hell and has come out on the other side and I want to greet him the way he deserves."  
Lottie got up and stood in front of Louis now. Louis stared up at her. "I didn't get the chance before but is it okay if I hug you?" she asked.

  
Louis didn't answer. He stood up and hugged her instead. "Always, Lots."

  
"I missed you so much, Lou."

  
"I missed you too, love. Thought of you all every night."

  
They pulled away but still had their arms on each other. "Sorry about mum," said Lottie, sending a concerned look at Johannah who was staring into space now. Harry stood up and went to sit beside her.

  
Louis followed her gaze. "It's alright. I'll admit that I expected her to be happy to see me but I understand."

  
"She'll come around," Lottie promised, but Louis doubted it.

  
Later that day, when it was time for them to leave, the girls wouldn't stop whining because Loubear from the pictures and funny Harry were leaving. Lottie, and Fizzy, calmed them down as much as possible and made sure all of them got a hug goodbye from both the boys.

  
After sitting in a trance like state the entire day, Jay finally snapped out of it and walked over to hug Louis. "I missed you so much, love," she whispered in his ear. And when she hugged Harry, she whispered something to him too.

  
"I'm trusting you with the most precious thing in my life, Harry. Take care of my baby," she said. "And if you mess up, I'll make sure you'll regret being alive."

  
Her words sent shivers up Harry's spine.

  
****

  
He felt as if he was drowning. Zayn had his mouth wide open but he couldn't breathe. _He's killing me. I'm gonna die while being fucked. Ironic._

  
Just as his vision started getting blurry, the hand left his throat and he took a huge gulp of air, coughing violently. A couple of tears escaped his eyes as he tried to focus on breathing. It wasn't an easy task considering how hard his client was still pounding into him.

  
They had been moved again. He wasn't sure where they were though, since none of them had been rented out yet. It was always like that for about a month or so after they moved. Simon usually required that much time to acquire enough information about the clients so that they didn't dare turn against him.

  
Some guy called Tomlinson had escaped. Lucky bastard, thought Zayn. He knew the guy vaguely. He'd brought him lunch and had called himself Louis. Louis actually had these laugh lines on his face and Zayn had never seen him crack a smile, ever.

  
Zayn was the goofy kind himself and he knew a prankster when he met one and he was rather sure that this guy was one of them. It used to make him wonder if they might have been friends in another universe.

  
In this universe though, Louis was the sad guy who brought him lunch from time to time. Louis was the guy whose scars ran the deepest. Louis was the guy who earned the most and got treated the worst. Louis was the guy he'd seen being dragged down the hallway by Simon once. The guy who was humiliated the most, beaten the hardest, fucked the worst, yet, who was expected who work the best.

  
Zayn remembered wishing that Louis made it out before he got killed but if he'd known that he was the next in line for that position, he would have thought a few times before making that wish.

  
"Hands and knees, whore," the man ordered and Zayn turned over obediently because he didn't have a choice. None of them ever had a choice.

  
And when the man pushed something into him that was way too big to go in there and had possibly torn him up a bit, he still moaned like he wanted it that way when all he wanted was to scream. They didn't own any part of themselves. Not even their voice.

  
****

  
"You hungry yet, Lou?" asked Harry, turning to look down at Louis who was curled up against him on the couch. Harry was getting him caught up on the latest music.

  
"No," he mumbled and started to fiddle with the television remote.

  
"You haven't had a proper lunch though. And I saw you throw your breakfast away."

  
Louis looked startled and Harry almost chuckled at how cute he looked with his eyes wide and lips parted. He would have if he wasn't so concerned about him.

  
"Why have you been doing that, Lou? Is my cooking not good? I can call the chef back in," he offered.

  
"No," Louis protested. "Your cooking is great, Haz. I'm just...not hungry? I didn't eat too often in there."

  
"Oh! Okay, right. You need to tell me these things, Lou. Like I said, I don't know what went on in there and I need to know so that I can try to help you. We need to ease you into a proper diet then."

  
Louis had a sudden realization when Harry said that. It was a terrifying realization.

"Harry, where is your computer?" he asked.

  
"My computer?" replied Harry, surprised at the sudden question. "Uh... I have a laptop actually. Want me to go and get it?"

  
"Yes, please."

  
Harry looked like he wanted to reprimand him for being overly polite but then, he sighed and left the room. It took him only a few seconds before he was running back into the room with a laptop in his hands.   
He turned it on and placed it on Louis' lap and then, came around to sit next to him. Louis stared at the screen, a blank expression on his face. "Why are there so many colorful boxes?"

  
Harry frowned as he stared into the screen. "That's... Oh! It's Windows 8, I'm sorry! It only came out few years back. Here, I'll help. You want the browser, right?"

  
Louis watched the screen with childlike wonder as Harry opened up the browser. The world had moved ahead while he was still trapped in the past.

  
"Here you go," said Harry, passing the laptop back to him. Louis typed in the URL. At least, that hadn't changed. Next time Harry looked over at the screen, Harry gasped and stared open mouthed at Louis. "Louis, what are you doing? That... That's a porn-site."

  
Louis didn't answer straight away. Instead he typed something in the search bar. And then, he put the laptop on Harry's lap as the video started to him. Harry tried to push it away, bewildered but Louis yelled, "No! Watch it, Harry."

  
Harry wasn't even looking at the screen. He had his wide eyes glued on Louis. "What are you doing?" he whispered. The trance was broken when the video started to play and the room filled with the sound of great heaving sobs. Harry knew that voice. It was Louis. Harry froze with horror.

  
His gaze snapped towards the screen where a tall, muscular man was pulling Louis out of what looked like a tiny cell. He had him by the hair and Louis seemed powerless in his grip.

  
Louis closed his eyes and looked away, his palms over his ears. This was a bad idea but Harry had said he wanted to know what had happened in there and Louis knew that he'd been recorded several times. They had played the videos for him back there in an attempt to humiliate him further.

  
This one was from the time when he'd been locked in that tiny cell following his escape attempt. He peered through his fingers at the screen where his upper body was now tied down to a table, face down. Well, that was fast. He didn't remember that happening so fast.

  
His gaze flicked to the time span of the video and he wanted to throw up. Two minutes. It was a two minute video. He had been tortured continuously for two hours so that some sick people could derive some sick pleasure for two minutes.

  
There was a strangled noise from Harry, who slammed the laptop shut and turned to face Louis. Louis was stunned. He reached for the laptop but Harry grabbed his wrists before he could. Louis winced in pain. _Fuck! When did he get so strong?_

  
"Why are you doing this, Lou? I don't want to see that," Harry ground out.

  
"You said you wanted to know!" Louis replied, his voice low as a whisper. Did he ever mention how scary Harry could be when he was mad?

  
"Well, this is not what I meant, Lou!" he shouted, getting off of the couch and pinching the bridge of his nose as he turned away from Louis. "I'm ready to wait as long as it takes for you to open up and tell me what went on there. I don't want to see some well edited videos from a porn-site."

  
Louis gulped. _He's angry. He's so angry. I have to apologize._ Louis sank to his knees. "I'm sorry," he whispered, his eyes clenched shut, waiting for pain.

  
He heard a sharp intake of breath but that was it. _Kiss my feet to show how sorry you are_ , Simon's words came back to him. Louis opened his eyes, his gaze trained on the bare feet in front of him. "I'm sorry," he said, again, as he leaned down to kiss the feet in front of him.

  
He was surprised when his lips hit the ground instead. Horrified, he whimpered and curled up in a fetal position on the ground. _If I let you kiss my feet, you have a chance at being forgiven. If I don't, you are in deep trouble. Got that, slut?_

  
He cringed when he felt a hand on his hair but the touch was kind. It was gentle. It reminded him of cold winter nights spent on his mother's lap as she stroked his hair and sang him Christmas carols. It reminded him of being loved. Tears trailed down the side of his face and soaked into the carpet.

  
"Louis. I'm not gonna hurt you, love. I'm not mad at you. I promise," said Harry, wiping at his face. Louis leaned into his touch, squinting up at him.

  
"Please, don't let them find me, Haz. P-please..." he whispered, as his voice gave away to heaving sobs.

  
"Hey, hey!" Harry cooed. "I won't. I promise you're safe now. They won't find you ever again."

  
"It was horrible," Louis admitted. Of course it was. 

  
"I know, love," replied Harry, his heart breaking for the boy who was once his guide and his anchor. 

  
"They hurt me so bad."

  
"But you're safe now," Harry assured him. 

  
"Promise?" Louis asked. 

  
"I promise."

 


	6. Distance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do leave some comments, please!!!

"You alive, mate?" asked the boy who brought in his lunch.

  
"Still alive, yeah," replied Zayn. It was the way a lot of them greeted each other. There was really no point asking how anyone was doing. Everyone was barely alive. Someone died every few days.

  
Zayn looked up from his sketch that he was doing on the floor with a bit of charcoal he'd managed to sneak in. The guy looked sick. Really sick. "Anything wrong, mate? Besides the obvious?"

  
The boy gulped. "I'm worried about Tommo," he admitted.

  
"Tommo?" asked Zayn. Who was that?

  
"Yeah, um... Louis Tomlinson."

  
"Oh. Oh, you guys were close?"

  
"No, mate. He was a nice chap though. Tried to make me laugh sometimes. Okay, I should go before the guard gets pissed."

  
"Wait, but I thought he escaped!" Zayn called after him, but the boy had already left the room.

  
****

  
"You sure this is the place?" asked David.   
Laura checked her phone once again. "Yeah, it is. At least, that's the address Louis gave us."

  
"But this house is completely bare...and small. How could this place house so many people?"

  
"It's what I was thinking. I mean... Wait, I just got a message from Harry."

  
David watched her as she read the message. "There's a passage!" she exclaimed, after reading it. "Louis forgot to mention that the place is underground. Here, this way..."

  
Laura led the team up a flight of stairs, confusing everyone for a moment before she paused on the landing and pressed against the wall there. It was actually a well-camouflaged door that led to another steep flight of stairs that went downwards.

  
They filed down the stairs and found themselves in a dark corridor. They sent someone of to look for the switchboards. It didn't take them long and soon, the entire place was lit up in a bright white light. It was really shocking, how huge this place was.

The corridor was wide and there were metal doors on either side with a small barred opening at the top of each, probably for ventilation. The corridor also branched out in several places. The place was big enough to house more than a hundred people.

  
It was when Laura had ventured into one of the smaller corridors that she heard the muffled sounds for the first time. It scared the crap out of her and she jumped, and flying to her chest. She realized that the noise was coming from one of the rooms and she quickly picked the lock and entered.   
She scrunched up her nose at the putrid smell. It was dark in here. She turned on her flashlight and the sight made her nauseous. She almost didn't recognize him but the scar on his face gave him away. She'd seen him before. "Stan?"

  
Stanley was lying on the ground, clad only in a pair of dirty briefs, much like Louis had been the day he'd escaped. He seemed dead, except he was trembling and moaning desperately. He was all skin and bones. The floor was damp and Laura thought she could see human feces in the corner. God, it was awful!

  
Laura screamed for the rest of their team. As she stood in the hallway with David watching as he barked out instructions and Stanley was moved out, she was filled with an overwhelming guilt. _It's all my fault. I should've found him sooner._

  
****

  
"Here you go. I've put in my number, your mum's, Lottie's, Liam's, David's and Laura's. You can add any you want," said Harry, handing the new phone to Louis.

  
He had tried to buy him an iPhone but Louis absolutely wouldn't have him buy it. Louis had always thought Apple products were too problematic. Harry had smiled at him fondly and bought him an Android. At least, some things hadn't changed.

  
Louis looked at the phone in his hand gloomily as Harry started the car and pulled out of the parking lot. Who was he kidding? These were the only people he knew anymore. Apart from Gemma and Anne that is and he hadn't heard of them ever since he escaped. He did hear Harry have hushed phone conversations with them sometimes.

  
"Maybe you should call your mum, huh? She's been pestering me to buy you a phone," Harry admitted, with a tiny smirk.

  
"Yeah, I'll do that."

  
Louis pulled up his contacts and called her. He was waiting for his mum to answer his call when Harry got a text. "It's from Laura," Louis mumbled, as he glanced at Harry's phone. Harry pulled over and checked the message.

  
Louis didn't know what was in it because Jay answered the phone at that moment. But Harry seemed more agitated and he kept glancing at Louis. Also, he was driving in the opposite direction now.

  
"Hi, mum."

  
"Louis! Harry finally bought you a phone?"

  
"Yeah."

  
"That's lovely. I can talk to you all the time now."

  
Louis nodded, even though it was useless. He wasn't used to phone conversations anymore. His mother was saying something about how he should visit this soon because her boyfriend, Dan, wanted to see him and the twins really, really wanted to meet their brother again when Harry gasped loudly and stamped down on the brakes, making Louis hurtle forward before getting snapped backwards by the seatbelt.

  
"Shit!" Harry whispered.

  
"Haz, wha-" Louis trailed off as he followed Harry's gaze. He gulped and his throat went dry. He could feel the panic bubbling in his stomach. "No. No, Harry, we need to go!"

  
He could faintly hear his mother screaming something over the phone that was still clutched in his hand but he couldn't care less right now. Harry quickly turned the car around and stared driving back the way they had come.

  
As they drove away, Louis turned in his seat and looked back despite Harry's hiss of disapproval. He was too far and yet, he felt as if he was staring right into his soul.

  
Simon Cowell.

  
He had pulled his car over. He had let them escape but this was a warning. They were still here. They were still in London. And they were out to get him. That was his last thought before the panic completely took over him.

  
****

  
"Where's Louis? How is he?" asked David, pushing past Harry and entering the house.   
Harry followed after him tiredly. "I just managed to get him to fall asleep. You found the guy? Stan?"

  
"Yeah. Laura's with him in the hospital," said David and he grimaced. "Poor boy was starved and Laura's blaming herself."

  
"Why?" asked Harry, incredulous.

  
"Because after we were told that Simon is leaving the country, she was the one who suggested that it was no point investigating that property. If we had gone there sooner, the boy would've been in a much better shape," David explained.

  
"But she couldn't have known that. It's not her fault!" Harry protested.

  
David gave him a sad smile. "I know that. Try saying that to Laura though. So, back to more important things, you saw Simon?"

  
Harry nodded. "Yeah. He was just there, in his car, waiting on the side of the road. When we noticed him, I turned around immediately and he followed for a bit and then, pulled over. I don't think he meant to actually come after us. It seemed more like a threat."

  
David made a noise if agreement. "That's what it is," he said. "He's letting us know that he's still around. He's not hiding anymore."  
"But why? Wouldn't it be safer for him to just hide? To take all the...people...and run away," Harry asked, frowning. "And what did he leave Stan behind for?"

  
"I'm not sure about about Stan yet but we'll know if and when he can talk," said David. "And I believe Simon realizes that Louis being out here means that there is a ton of evidence against him out here. He's not worried about us tracking him down once he's out of here. The man's probably got a foolproof plan if he's been doing it for so many years but he can't leave while Louis is still alive and free."

  
"Why?"

  
"Because Louis is evidence. And so are you, to an extent. If he does his job well, he probably likes to not leave any traces behind. And Louis is a very big trace of his filthy business. He wants to remove that trace."

  
Harry's eyes widened as he realized what he meant. David clasped his shoulder. "We're putting you both under 24/7 security. I don't want any harm to come to my nephew or to you, child."

  
Harry nodded, a little numb now. _They want to kill Louis. Sweet, little, Louis. They want to kill him._

  
The doorbell rang. David went to the door and opened it to find Johannah come barrelling in, followed by a frazzled looking Lottie.

  
"Jay! Lottie! What are you doing here? Who's with the kids?" David exclaimed.

  
"Dan is staying over with them. Where's Louis?"

  
"Dan? You seeing each other?" David asked, shooting anxious looks at Harry.

  
"Yes, David, and we have been for the past three months. You know this. Stop stalling. Where is my child?" she yelled, turning to Harry.

  
"He's in his room," Harry squeaked, casting wide eyes at Lottie and David. David was just as confused as him and Lottie just looked annoyed at the scene his mother was creating.

  
"He's alright?" Jay questioned.

  
Harry nodded quickly. "Nobody's laid a finger on him."

  
"What happened this afternoon?"

  
Harry mouth fell open in an 'o'. Now he got it. He remembered that Louis had been talking to her on the phone when the whole incident with Simon had taken place.

  
Harry quickly explained all that had happened and watched as the the terror on Jay's face vanished slowly and was replaced with something worse, disappointment. "I'm taking Louis home," she announced, when Harry was done, confirming Harry's worst fears.

  
"No, Jay, please... I'm sorry. Nothing happened to Lou. He's okay here."

  
"My child is in danger here. I'm taking him back home to Doncaster, where he'll be away from all of this mess."

  
"Johannah," David spoke up. "Louis can't leave. Harry's place has the best security and I'm setting up my best 24/7 bodyguards for them."

  
"Well, they aren't exactly staying inside this house, are they? Harry took him out," she accused.

  
Harry frowned and lowered his gaze to the floor. "I'm sorry."

  
"It's okay, kid," David assured him. "Jay, stop being ridiculous-"

  
"Louis is my child and I've lost him once. I haven't even had the chance to properly get him back and it looks like I'm going to lose him again. I'm taking him home. That's the end of this discussion."

  
"But-"

  
"I said, this discussion is over!"

  
An hour and a half later, Johannah and Lottie were standing by the door once again. This time Jay had one of Harry's duffel bags in her hand which held some of the clothes and things that Harry had bought Louis earlier that day.

  
A very tired and sleepy Louis stood a few steps away from the door and near to Harry. David stood by the side, shaking his head and muttering about how ridiculous it all was and how Jay was making it harder for him to do his job. Harry thought he heard him say, "Laura will have my head for letting this happen."

  
Harry smiled sadly at Louis. "I'm sorry-" he started but Louis cut him off.

  
"You did nothing wrong. Mum's just being paranoid," he said with a glance behind him.   
"I'm not!" Jay protested. "And Harry, you're lucky my boy's alright." And then, out of nowhere. "Oh, and Harry can come visit anytime. Wouldn't want to keep the lovebirds apart."

  
Harry blinked. Louis' face turned bright red and he looked at his shoes. Lottie had her mouth hanging open and was staring at her mother and David spluttered. "Did you seriously just say that, Jay? Now? When you literally are keeping them apart."

  
Harry blinked again. Why was that more surprising than the fact than the fact that Jay had just assumed they were together? They hadn't said anything to anyone. Did everyone think they were together? _Were_ they together?

  
"Thank you for taking care of me, Haz," Louis whispered as the other three started bantering amongst themselves.

  
"Please, don't. Don't thank me Lou. Isn't this what we do? We take care of each other. Always."

  
Louis cracked a watery smile, one of his rare ones. It's what they used to say all the time, the nerds that they were. "Always."

  
"I'll visit. Everyday, if possible. No, wait. I'll move to Doncaster."

  
"No, you won't," Louis said and then, he noticed the look on Harry's face. "Harry... You really can't do that. That's..."

  
"That's for me to decide, Lou." 

  
Louis gulped. How did he get so lucky? "I meant it, Haz. I love you."

  
The dimples on Harry's cheeks deepened immediately. "I love you too."

  
Afterward, as David watched the siblings pile into the car, Harry pulled Jay aside. "Jay, I'm so sorry."

  
Jay smiled a little. "It's alright. I'm just too worried to let him stay away from me. You do understand? My baby's been through so much and I want to be there to help him heal. Also, London is an absolute mess with all those lunatics running around."

  
Harry chuckled at her choice of words. Simon was a lunatic alright. Then, he sobered a little. "He has these nightmares, Jay. Until few days back, he never woke up while he was having them. I'd just calm him down and he'd continue sleeping but last night and the night before, he woke up. His nightmares are getting worse."

  
Jay placed a hand on his shoulder. "Harry... I'm a nurse. I got this."

  
Harry nodded and hugged her goodbye. She ruffled his hair the way she's always done and patted his cheek lightly before she climbed into the car as well.

  
Harry went round to the other side and knocked on the window, which was lowered immediately and Louis poked his head out. "Don't miss me too much," Harry whispered. "And be careful."

  
"You be careful. Don't move to Donny. You have good security here," replied Louis.   
Harry rolled his eyes and looked back down at Louis fondly. "Can I kiss you on your cheek, Lou?"

  
Louis thought about it for a second and then, he just turned his head to the side so Harry could kiss his cheek, which he did. Louis returned the favor by quickly kissing him on the nose, taking Harry completely by surprise.

  
"Take care, love. See you soon," Louis said as the car started to move.

  
"See you soon. Love you, Lou!"

  
As Harry stood beside David, waving even as the car drove out of sight, till his arm started to ache and his tears threatened to fall, Harry couldn't help the cold feeling that settled in his chest. He tried to tell himself that he was thinking too much but the feeling wouldn't go away. The feeling that something was going to go horribly wrong.

  
****


	7. Nightmares

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Cigarette burns.

Laura sat on her balcony, curled up in the armchair. She had spent most of her time in the past two days in the hospital, waiting for Stan to wake up but he was severely malnutritioned and it was going to take him a while to get better.

  
She cursed loudly into the night air. Why couldn't she do anything right? Also, with the whole drama with Louis' mother, they had to work on security in Doncaster now. All of it was giving her a severe headache.

  
She frowned as she heard the soft padding of socked feet moving around the house. "Annie? You awake, darling?" she called, turning her head to squint into the darkness of her living room. A little child came running out, one arm outstretched and the other busy rubbing at her eyes.

  
"What are you doing up so late, baby?" she asked, as pulled the child onto her lap. Annie tucked her head into the crook of Laura's neck. "Bad dreams, mummy..." she mumbled.

  
Laura felt her heart break for the child. Little children often had nightmares but Annie's nightmares were a different story altogether. Annie's very existence is a different story.

"I'm so sorry, love," she whispered, although Annie didn't really understand why she was apologizing. "Come on, let's go to bed. This time I'll be holding you, so there'll be no more nightmares. No more bad dreams, hmm?"

  
Annie sighed softly in her arms as Laura stood up and carried her to their room. Ever since she was born, Annie had always slept with her. Her nightmares made it impossible to sleep on her own. She needed Laura.

  
And as Laura settled into the bed and pulled up the covers around both of them, she acknowledged that she needed Annie just as much.

  
****

  
Jay woke up abruptly in the middle of the night. For a moment, she was confused as to what had woken her up. She looked sleepily at Dan, who was sound asleep. He'd been staying over now to help Jay take care of the kids. Then, there was that noise again and this time Dan sat up as well.

  
A long, drawn out wail.

  
They looked at each other, understanding dawning onto them and they rushed out of the room. The girls were all standing at their doors, looking absolutely frightened. "Girls, get inside! Lottie!" Jay ordered. Lottie nodded quickly and started to coax the girls back onto their rooms.

  
When they opened the door to Louis' room, they found Louis trashing on the bed, his back arching painfully, his hands in tight fists by his side, his eyes wide open and his jaw clenched as he released agonized moans.

Jay quickly ran to his side. "Louis!" she called, bringing a hand to cup his cheek and Louis flinched away violently.

  
It took her longer than it should have to get him to snap out of it. He didn't respond well to touches and wasn't able to hear Jay's words but eventually he calmed down, sinking back into his bed, sobbing pitifully.

  
"Shhh," Jay soothed him, stroking his hair lightly. She had asked permission for that earlier. "You are okay. You're with us, love."  
Louis continued to cry and through broken sobs, he asked for Harry because, "I n-need my Ha-zza, p-please mum."

  
Jay didn't quite know what to say to that. She was a little jealous, to be honest. But if it's what her baby wanted, then he could have it.

Only, it would have to wait till the next morning. She didn't have to explain it to Louis, thankfully. Exhausted after the whole ordeal, his laboured breathing gave way to a steady rise and fall of his chest.

  
****

  
Zayn scowled as he dragged the heavy trolley down the hallway. He was taking over Louis' lunch duties now and it was fucking annoying and tiring as hell. He had been walking in Louis' shoes for only a few days now and he was already contemplating suicide. And the worst of it hadn't even started. With Louis gone, it'd only be a while before Simon turned to him for his sick games.

  
By the time he was done delivering lunch, he was knackered. He let the guard unlock the chain attaching him to the trolley by the waist before he took his own plate and entered his room.

  
Zayn hadn't even touched his soggy meal yet when he heard the door being unlocked again. He groaned. How did Louis do this? "I haven't fucking had my lunch. Tell the client to wait," he yelled as a guard walked in, immediately regretting it when the man slapped him across the face.

  
Zayn clenched his fists and glared at the man. It was a real struggle to hold back instead of just hitting back. The man glared right back. "Lose the attitude, Malik. Or we might just hire you one of the days when you're free and straighten you up, like we did to Tomlinson," he growled.

  
Now that was something that terrified Zayn. He never wanted to have those haunted, dead eyes. People here had it bad but Louis had it a hundred times worse than any of them.

  
"And you don't have a client right now. Simon wants you," the man continued. It's as if the world had stopped spinning. Zayn stared blankly at the man. He could feel the blood rushing in his ears. It took him back to the day he was kidnapped.

  
****

  
_Zayn blinked furiously to adjust to the light as the hood around his head was pulled off. He immediately started to struggle against the ropes holding him captive, screaming through the cloth gag in his mouth._

  
_"Sit still," a voice said, eerily calm and yet dripping with malice. Zayn looked up at the man. His vision was slightly blurry and his head somewhat sluggish from all the crap they had pumped into him but he saw the man in front of him alright. Dressed in a smart, expensive suit, he was seated in an armchair, ankle propped over his other knee, a cigarette between his fingers, smoke circling around his head. Zayn loathed the man on first sight._

  
_The man stood up, crushing the lit end of his cigarette on the skin of the boy kneeling at his feet, making him shriek and sob pitifully. That was the first time Zayn noticed the boy._

_Small and frail, he was a tiny thing really. Stark naked too, like himself. They had stripped him sometime during the journey to this place. He must have been unconscious. Zayn found his eyes widening as his eyes roamed the boy's pale skin, littered with bruises and cuts and burns._

  
Shit! What is this place? This is insane.

  
_"Zayn, is it? I'm Simon," the scary man said, crouching in front of him. Zayn glared at him, only to lower his eyes when Simon gaze seemed to burn into his eyes._

  
_He grabbed Zayn's face, turning his head left and right. Zayn tried to pull away, only to be smacked across the face. He shrank backwards when Simon's hands trailed down but there was nowhere to go. A thick pair of arms wrapped around him from behind, keeping him in place, so that all he could do was sit there and let Simon feel him out._

  
_Simon hummed appreciatively, standing up. "Pretty one. Could have been my top earner if it wasn't for Louis here," he said, walking back towards Louis and patting his head. Zayn didn't miss the way the boy, Louis, flinched away from his touch. "Maybe one day you can take his place, when he stops being so desirable."_

  
****

  
Zayn remembered that day very clearly, remembered looking at Louis and pitying him. He also remembered Louis bringing him lunch the next day and mumbling, "You're lucky. Pray to whatever god you believe in that you're never pretty enough for Simon."

  
He did. He prayed to remain insignificant for as long as he had to be here. But Louis was gone now and as insignificant as he might have been for the past few years, he wasn't even remotely insignificant now. It had been decided the moment Simon set eyes on him. He was to replace Louis if and when the time comes. And the time had come.

  
He felt like a prisoner walking to the gallows and he stood up from his bed, his food lying untouched, and followed after the guard.

  
****

  
Louis frowned at the ceiling as he lay on his bed. "Louis, love, open the door please. You need to have your lunch," Johannah called from outside, knocking on his door. Louis knew he should open the door, knew how upset his mum would get when she's reminded of how broken he really was and why he was that way. He knew that if he refused another meal, she'd have another meltdown. It doesn't make him change his mind, though. "I'm not hungry, mum," he says, just loud enough to be heard in the other side of his door.

  
Johannah sighed audibly. "Louis..." she said, sounding really, really exhausted and Louis hated it. He hated how tired she sounded and he hated knowing that he was the reason she was so tired. He missed Harry terribly but he couldn't help but feel guilty every time he thought of going back to live with Harry.

Harry was a 19 year old celebrity. He should be out partying and enjoying life, not babysitting a 21 year old man.

  
Johannah didn't seem to understand that he wasn't ready for large meals yet. He had been living on stale bread and soup once a day for three years now. He couldn't just jump back to three large meals a day. He didn't want to but he found himself comparing his mum to Harry unconsciously. Harry understood. Harry never forced him to eat more than he could. Harry didn't stuff him till he had no choice but to throw it all up because his stomach hurt.

  
"Louis, open the door, son," said Dan. Louis sat up in bed with a sigh. "Your mum is really upset. And you've got about 10 missed calls from Harry. You left your phone in the living room."

  
Louis was up and out of his room in seconds. He needed to get used to having a phone to carry around. This wasn't the first time he forget his phone. Dan handed him his phone, a frustrated look on his face. He opened his mouth to say something but Louis snatched the phone and retreated to his room once again.

  
A part of him felt terrible for his actions but the other part of him didn't care who he hurt right now. He was hurting worse.

  
Louis crouched on the floor, with his back to the door and answered the call. "H'lo?"

  
"Hey, Lou."

  
"Hi..."

  
"You sound upset."

  
Louis rolled his eyes and sighed. "Mum called you, didn't she?"

  
"She didn't!"

  
"Well, someone did."

  
"Alright, I might have spoken to Lottie when you didn't answer my calls. I was worried."

  
"Hmm..."

  
"Don't skip your meals, Lou."

  
"I'm not-"

  
"I know it's difficult for -"

  
"Harry -"

  
" - it's alright, really. Just -"

  
"Will you -"

  
" - your health. She's -"

  
"HARRY! I'm not trying to starve myself alright? They starved me enough. But my body isn't ready. She's been trying to feed me a three course meals three times a day and you know that's not possible. If I have to throw up one more time... goodness! Just- I'm not a child, bloody 'ell!"

  
Harry seemed stunned into silence for a moment. Louis plucked at a loose thread on his pajamas as his short burst of anger dissipated to give way to embarrassment. He bit at his lip, feeling more and more like a petulant child, until Harry spoke again.

  
"I s'pose that's- I mean I knew it already, so er..." Harry sighed. "I should've understood. Shouldn't have assumed the worst. Jay can be a little, er, enthusiastic... Is that the right word? Just... She's overwhelmed, yeah? And worried."

  
"She needn't be!" Louis protested.

  
Harry sighed. He did that a lot, Louis noted. "Just play along, please, Lou. Sit down and have a few bites. Just enough. Not too much. It ought to keep her satisfied for a bit. Don't shut her out, though, Louis."

  
"I'm not trying to..."

  
"I know. Yeah," Harry mumbled. A few seconds passed in tense silence. Now what? Downstairs, there was a loud clatter and Louis jumped in fright, settling once he heard Lottie's exasperated voice telling her sisters to keep it down.

  
"I do wish I was there with you," Harry mumbled. "But they don't want me going anywhere till they've sorted some things out. It's horrible, Lou. And my manager's having a fit because I've missed so many events..."

It felt like a punch to his chest. "I'm sorry," Louis breathed. He felt like such an inconvenience.

"What on earth are you sorry for?" Harry asked, incredulous.

  
Of course. Of course Harry would pretend it was all fine and that he wasn't being imprisoned in his own house because of Louis. Louis opened his mouth to say just that but changed his words when he realized it was no point. Harry would simply pretend that all of this was great romance and completely ignore how inconvenient it all was for him and everyone else. "You would say- Well, nothing. Just pretend I didn't say that. I was daydreaming again."

  
"Louis..."

  
"I promise," Louis said and Harry, naive little Harry (not so little anymore, was he?), believed it. To his innocent, untouched soul, promises were things that could never be broken. As dangerous as it is to be so very naive in a world so cruel, Louis thought it was endlessly endearing.

  
"Tell me something, Haz," requested Louis.

  
"Ask away."

  
"No. I meant... Just talk. And I'll listen." Harry made a small noise of assent and Louis leaned back against the door.

  
An hour passed. Louis only realized when his legs had gone completely numb and Harry started to run out of things to talk about, but he plowed on. "Have you seen my garden, Louis? No you haven't. That just won't do. Next time you're here, we'll amend that. But wait, what was I going to say? Umm... I don't remember."

  
Louis chuckled. "You've run out of things to talk about, Haz."

  
"No, I haven't!" Harry cried, indignantly.  
"You have, love. And you must be tired. Call me later, yeah?" Louis suggested, trying to stand on his tingly feet.

  
"Oh. Alright! You'll go for your meals, won't you? Just eat what you can..."

  
Louis sighed. "I repeat: I'm not a child. But if it'll get you to calm down, then okay... I will."

  
"Thank you," Harry said and Louis rolled his eyes. He shook out his leg for a bit before walking over to the window.

  
"Alright, Lou. I'll talk to you later," said Harry.

  
"Bye," Louis replied, as he pulled the curtains aside to let in some light. He blinked against the sharp glare of the sun. "Bye. Love you," Harry said, before he hung up, right before Louis' phone clattered to the floor. He backed away from the window, his hands over his heart, an attempt to physically stop his heart from beating so furiously hard.

  
He backed right up to the opposite side of the room till the back of his knees hit the side of his bed and he sank to the floor, with his arms over his head and face buried between his knees, trying to breathe.

 _Breathe, Louis_. The more Louis thought about what he'd just seen, the more insane it seemed because surely, Simon's face wouldn't be hanging outside his bedroom window. When he gathered his wits enough to open his eyes and peer at the window once again, he broke into nervous laughter. There was nothing there. Of course, there is nothing there. This isn't a sci-fi movie.

  
Louis didn't even realized when nervous laughter gave way to hysterical sobs but when he swiped at his cheeks, the tears were there and he was convinced that he'd well and truly lost his mind.

  
****

  
Zayn cried out in pain as he was flung into his cell. He headed straight for the shower, desperate to get rid of the blood and grime on his skin. As he walked in, he caught sight of his own face on the cracked mirror over the sink and he was startled. Could a person look so different in the span of an hour?

Staring back at him was a face that wouldn't be out of place on the streets, on a dying homeless man.

  
There wasn't a part of him that wasn't in pain. It was a bone deep ache that made him awfully nauseous. He'd always known Louis had it bad but what he'd imagined was a far cry from what he'd experienced today. He spat into the sink and grimaced when he saw blood in his spit. He'd bitten into his lip in an attempt to keep from screaming. Tired and in agony, he limped to the shower, shivering as the icy water slapped cruelly against the cuts and bruises on his skin.

  
He had only just stepped out of the bathroom when his door was flung open again. "Client," the man said curtly, pushing a thin girl in. Zayn was confused for a moment but then, noticed the box in her hands. A makeup box. The girl caught him staring. "Was an intern at a salon before they caught me. Used to do this for Louis before. Clients don't like to see the bruises much," she explained in a whisper.

  
As the evidence of the torture he had endured not an hour ago started to magically disappear unless the girl's skilful hands, Zayn finally allowed himself to think of escape. He _had_ to escape, or he'd lose his mind.

  
****

  
Liam and Harry sat in Harry's living room, staring blankly at the television. Neither of them spoke for the longest time. The silence was broken by a sigh from Harry. "Liam, I'm serious," he said. "If you don't speak in the next minute, I'm going to fling you out my window. My back is killing me right now, Jesus! We've been sitting here for an hour."

  
Liam pulled at his sleeve, coughed a little and frowned. He seemed to be contemplating something very deeply. When he did speak, it was so sudden that Harry jumped with a squeak he liked to pretend he hadn't let out.

"Well! I... You alright? Sorry. Yeah, well... I was thinking last night, about my...uh...relationships," Liam paused, frowning at the floor some more. "It's just...strange? I mean...DoyouthinkIcouldbebisexual?"

  
Harry gave him a bemused look. "I'd like to pretend I understand what you've just asked, Liam, but something tells me it's important that I should actually hear the question instead of just nodding along."

  
Liam stretched the back of his head, sheepishly. "You're a tosser. My question was, 'Do you think I could be bisexual?'. But I don't think it's a question, really? I do think I am bisexual. I mean, I've always been attracted to men but I guess I sort of just...pretended I wasn't attracted. I mean, I did love my girlfriends. But from time to time, I see a nice looking man and can't help but wonder what it would be like to be with them. And it doesn't seem so bad. Not bad at all. You know what I mean."

  
"Are you attracted to me, Li?" Harry asked, cheekily.

  
Liam's eyes widened dramatically and his head snapped up to look at Harry, knocking him on the head once he noticed Harry's Cheshire cat grin. "Shut it, you!"

  
"I'm serious. You have one of the hottest males in the world sitting next to you. You're not attracted? Not a bit? Well, I'm hurt. You're not qualified to be attracted to men anymore. Go away. Try again later."

  
Liam shook his head at Harry's antics but his lips pulled up in a fond smile as he thanked the universe for giving him such an amazing best friend. "You're just not my type, Harry. I guess I'd go for very, very masculine," he teased.

  
"Heyyyy! I'm masculine, Liiiam. I promise," Harry whined. However, a high-pitched giggle escaped him and he clamped a hand over his mouth. "I just giggle sometimes... Screw gender stereotypes. Men can giggle too."

  
"And wear women's tops."

  
"They can! Besides, they're pretty. And I could bench press you, Liam."

  
"No way!"

  
"I can demonstrate!"

  
****

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do leave your thoughts in the comments! I desperately want to know what people think of this story. I need to know if it's worth the effort, if anyone really cares for this story.


	8. Rest In Peace Johannah

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THIS IS NOT A NEW CHAPTER BUT AN IMPORTANT NOTICE. PLEASE READ:

Author's Note: 

Hey, everyone who's reading this story. It's the 11th of December and as we all know, the past two days have been a nightmare. Jay was such a lovely woman, and to think that this happened... I still can't wrap my head around it, to be honest. And my heart breaks for Louis, who lost his best friend, for Lottie, Fizzy, Phoebe and Daisy who might have to grow up too fast now and of course, Ernie and Doris, who are too young for this. This shouldn't have happened but what can I say? It's life, innit? The best people leave us too early and it's our job to make sure their memory goes on living long after they're gone. Send your love to the family and keep them in your thoughts, please. 

And can I just say, I am so incredibly proud of what Louis did last night. I mean, to go up there and sing that full song at a time when he was so vulnerable... That must have been so hard. This is the bravest thing I have ever witnessed. Please do buy the song, it's up on iTunes, Spotify and Google Play. 

I honestly don't know what to do with this story after what happened. I hadn't uploaded in a while because I had exams but now, I can't upload because the chapter I'm writing has so much interaction between Jay and Louis and I had stopped writing somewhere in between the conversation and now, I don't know how to continue. 

What would you guys want me to do? Would you want me to write and upload a chapter that has so much of Johannah? Because I'll do it, if that's what you all want. I just don't know what's appropriate and what's not. I'm heartbroken but I can still carry on with the story but I need to know if my readers want that or should I wait for a while? Please help me out guys.


	9. Hope

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Graphic scenes ahead with disturbing elements which includes drowning and forced sexual acts.

It was four in the morning. Zayn's client was fast asleep next to him while he lay there, awake and in agonizing pain, trying to muffle his laboured breathing. His body shook with involuntary sobs. He was sure he would die if he didn't get away.

That evening when he'd been driven to his client's place, his body hadn't yet recovered from the torture he faced at Simon's hands. He had been in so much pain that he had begged the man to go easy on him. It was the wrong thing to say. The man had paid too much for his services. Now, hours later, his wounds were bleeding again and his muscles ached terribly and he'd been ordered to "shut up and go to sleep and do not make a single sound".

He had to escape. Zayn didn't have to look at his client to know that he was asleep. His loud snores were a good enough indication of the fact. Stealthily, he got out of bed, his heart nearly jumping out of his chest when the bed creaked. He turned to glance at the man once but he was still snoring away. Zayn tiptoed his way to the kitchen, grabbing the man's discarded clothes on the way, and quietly shut the door behind him and locked it from the inside.

"Gotta get rid of the tracking device," he muttered to himself as he stripped off of his clothes and pulled on his client's outfit, trying to calm his racing heart. The clothes were huge on him but they'd do. He carefully folded the legs of the trousers, so that he wouldn't trip over them. The entire time, his hands shook violently, a collective result of the extreme pain he was in and also, his state of anxiety.

From the very beginning, it'd been made clear to him that trying to escape was actually worse than staying in the brothel. He'd seen what happened to people who tried to escape. No one ever made it out, though. Except Louis. And no matter how much he wanted to believe that he could do it too, he didn't believe it at all. But he had to try. For the sake of his own sanity, he had to try.

So, despite the pain and the sinking feeling in his chest and the fact that he was feeling a lot like a martyr, he opened the kitchen window and climbed out.

****

Louis leaned out of his window. It was still dark outside. He sighed and pushed away from the window. It was four in the morning but he could hear his mother moving around in the kitchen, probably making herself some tea. Louis had had a nightmare a few hours ago and he knew his mother found it difficult to get any sleep after his episodes.

He slowly made his way down the stairs and sure enough, Johannah was in the kitchen boiling some water for her tea. Louis walked up next to her and she spun around with one hand over her chest and the other over her mouth.

"God!" she huffed when she realized it was only him. "I didn't hear you come in. Scared the life out of me."

Louis smiled and shrugged. " 's only me, mum. Go sit on the couch. I'll get the tea."

Jay nodded, kissing him on the forehead before moving to the living room. Louis joined her a moment later, with two cups of tea in his hands, handing one to her and taking a seat next to her. Louis sipped his tea. They sat side by side quietly for a moment. "Why are you awake, mum?" he finally asked her.

She looked a little taken aback by the question but then, she sighed and shrugged. "I don't know. Couldn't sleep."

"Did you go to sleep after I had the nightmare?" he asked.

Johannah took a deep breath and put down her tea. She turned sideways a little to face him. "No, I haven't but that is not your cross to bear. How I deal with my child's nightmares is my problem." "But I'm not a child anymore," Louis mumbled. Johannah chuckled lightly and bumped her arm against his. "You are, love. To me, you'll always be a baby."

And it was too much, just...too much. His eyes were stinging, but nope, he wasn't going to cry. He looked up towards the ceiling, refusing to let any tears esacape. "I'm a prostitute, mum," he tried to say, but it came out in a whisper. He grimaced because he sounded too broken and why did he keep doing that? Why couldn't he stop crying? He could hear his mother gasp and she grasped his free hand tightly, comfortingly. "No, you're not, Louis! You were forced to be one for a while and it's over now. It wasn't even your choice. Even if it had been, you'd still deserve to be loved and cared for. You'd still be my child," she insisted.

"It doesn't make a difference, mum," he argued, his voice embarrassingly high. "Of course it does-"

"No, it doesn't!" Louis whispered harshly. "It doesn't make a difference, mum, because to half of London, I'm still the guy they paid to fuck and no, don't tell me to watch my language. You can't ask that of me. Not anymore!"

"Louis..." Johannah whispers, prying the cup of tea from his death grip. Having placed it on the coffee table, she tried to pull him to her chest. He flinched away immediately, shattering her heart. He huddled into one side of the couch, leaning against the armrest, his knees pulled up against his chest.

"I know... I know that I should be thankful. I've got you, my family, Harry...and I'm alive and I'm free and- and it should be enough but it's not. Because this will always stay with me! I'll always be this person! Simon's highest earner, the whore who fucked one fourth of LA and half of London. That's all I'll ever be."

"That's not true, Louis. You know it-" Jay tried to say but Louis cut her off.

"So many people, mum," Louis said, staring wide-eyed at the floor. Louis paused for a moment as his breathing grew labored. He wiped at his damp eyes roughly before he spoke again, voice a little more steady but more hollow.

"I'd tried to escape a week after we were moved to London from LA. Was the wrong thing to do. Needless to say I was punished brutally." Jay wanted to stop him right there, unsure if she was ready to hear yet, but she had to. This was her son. She had to know. "Simon was furious, mum. He locked me in a c-cell for two weeks straight." An unexpected sob interrupted him and he coughed lightly and continued. "It was s-so, so tiny, I could barely breathe. Th-they... They..." Louis trailed off, his eyes going wide with fear.

Unconsciously, he dug his nails into the skin of his forearm, which didn't go unnoticed by Johannah.

"Louis?"

He didn't respond. Jay reached out to try and pry his fingers off of his arm. Louis gasped and curled in on himself.

"No!" he whispered. "No, please, it hurts."

She looked at him, helpless, as he pulled his knees up, shaking and whimpering in fright, thick tears trailing down his cheeks.

****

_Louis was sure he had run out of tears. He had been so close, so impossibly close, to freedom until abruptly, he wasn't anymore. Now, he was not only heartbroken but also, terrified for his life. Simon had locked him here after he'd been dragged back in. He wasn't sure how long ago that was. The cell was tiny. It was actually just a cage, only big enough for him to lie curled up in._

_There were other cages in the room. He hadn't seen them really. It was dark in here. However, he could definitely hear his fellow inmates and he hated it. He hated how pitiful they sounded. It scared the crap out of him because soon, he would be in the same state, too much in pain to be able to be quiet. From the time he got locked in here, he hadn't had a single moment of silence._

_His bladder was also painfully full. So he guessed he must've been here for a while. He knew they weren't going to let him out to use a toilet but he didn't want to give in so easily either, desperate to hold on to whatever dignity he had left. He was also very, very hungry. They weren't fed much anyway. One meal a day was all they were allowed but ever since he got locked in the cage, he had had no food or water._

_Louis winced as the door to the room was wrenched open. A couple other people groaned as well when light poured in, blinding them. Someone walked in, keys jangling in their hand. Louis gulped and curled into himself tighter when the person stopped outside his cell. He clenched his eyes shut and prayed. He knew it was futile but he had to try._

_He shouldn't have bothered because the door to his cell was thrown open and a hand reached inside, grabbing his hair and pulling him out with a harsh jerk. Louis screamed, clutching at the hand in his hair. That really hurt._

_The man crouched down in front of him now, grinning manically as he held a torch to his face. Louis grimaced at the stench of alcohol permeating from him._

_"_ _Tomlinson, is it? You have guests. They want to see you," the man said, with a cruel chuckle._

_He stood up, hand still in Louis' hair. "Shut the fucking moaning!" he yelled, banging his keys against a nearby cage. The entire room fell silent at once._

_Louis tried to stand up to ease the pull on his hair but too soon, the man started to walk, dragging him along. Louis shrieked as the rough floor scraped at his knees and shins, still clawing at the hand in his hair in an attempt to free himself._

_Too soon, they arrived at a part of this place Louis has only heard of, never seen. The entrance was almost grand, with a heavy wooden door with intricate carvings. The moment they were through the door, he was flung into the carpeted ground. Before he could get up, a new pair of hands gripped his hair and pulled him onto his knees._

_Louis found himself staring into the eyes of a very beautiful woman. She looked, almost kind. He would've been fooled, if not for the hand in his hair and the whip in her other hand. He was snapped out of his thoughts by a strange clicking sound from his side. When he turned to see, (the woman surprisingly allowed him to turn his head), he nearly fell over. There was a camera. Cameras. Now that he looked properly, this was like a proper movie set, with cameramen filming them, huge lights set up against the walls in the corners._

_His eyes welled up at the thought of people watching. His friends, his family finding out like this._

_The woman in front of him seemed to know what he was thinking, because suddenly, there was a whisper in his ear. "You're gonna be a proper movie star, kitten. A porn star," she said, before fastening a collar around his neck. It had a leash attached to it._

_Standing straight again, she addressed the other people in the room, three men who were all very different in appearance yet equally intimidating. "Alright boys, our entertainment for the night has arrived," she said. "Isn't he a pretty little thing?" she asked, stroking her whip down his face, making him flinch._

_The men grinned in a way that made Louis' blood run cold. They looked downright cruel. Louis averted his eyes to the ground, unable to look at them any longer. This time when his leash was pulled, he followed obediently, on hands and knees. He hated himself for it, for giving in so easily, for letting them humiliate him...but he wasn't brave enough. He wasn't brave enough to find out what his punishment would be._

_They led him to the center of the room. In front of him was a small tub filled to the brim with water. Louis frowned, confused until he felt a hand at the back of his neck and he froze. His breath started to come in short gasps as he began panicking. The reality of his situation had just set in._

_Without warning, his head was plunged into the tub. Louis kicked and struggled and pushed but he was held in firmly right until the moment when he was about to breathe in. His head was jerked out, hardly giving him enough time to take a breathe before he was plunged in again. They did it over and over again, laughing all the while as if this was the funniest thing they had seen. It went on till his eyes were stinging and his lungs burning. It went on long enough that he was still gasping for air long after it stopped._ _He hadn't realized it had stopped._

_They dragged him to a table. Louis was only semi-conscious as they bent him over it and pulled his wrists up above his head, tying them somewhere at the edge of the table. His ankles were tied to the legs of the table so that he couldn't bring them together. Someone climbed onto the table, near his head._

_His head was jerked up by the hair and he vaguely registered that the thing pressing insistently to his lips was a penis. Now, this was something he was used to. He knew how to do this by now, but the moment he tried to take it into his mouth, his head was tilted back and the man shoved his dick down his throat, choking him. Before he could get used to it, he heard something whoosh through the air and the very next second, a searing pain shot up his spine._

_Choking, he tried to pull away but it was pointless. He was stuck here and he could do nothing but take it as the cane lashed down again and again on his back, his arse and his thighs, anywhere they could reach._

_They didn't care that they were hitting him in dangerous places. They just wanted to hurt him, in any and every way they could. He was scared for his life, sure that he was going to die here. Belatedly, he realized that the inside of his thighs and his legs were wet. Loud, booming laughter filled the room. He'd never been more humiliated in his life._

_Or so he'd thought._

_The next thing they did was to make him crawl to each of them, on his knees with his hands cuffed behind his back, begging them to fuck him and use him. And he couldn't refuse, because he learned the hard way that the collar around his neck could be used to shock him. So, he had no option but to do as they said. And as he crawled across the room, begging like a proper whore, he realized that he hadn't experienced half of it yet._

****

There'd been a robbery during the night. The road was teeming with officials in uniforms, walking around talking into their phones. Zayn sat down on the steps of a building, shivering. It was extremely cold. He hadn't thought of snatching a jacket and his client's thin shirt did nothing to keep him warm. But he was used to this. He wore much less than this usually and it was generally cold in his cell.

He sat and watched the drama unfold, scared to approach the cops and yet, feeling relatively safer here than anywhere else. From what he'd gathered, some robbers broke into the house at night and held the occupants of the house at gunpoint while they gathered all the valuables. The lady of the house, however, refused to part with her jewelry, even at gunpoint. While they didn't manage to kill her, she was severely injured.

"Stupid rich people," Zayn thought. Here was a woman, who probably owned enough jewelry to wear three items everyday for three months without repeating any item and yet, she'd rather die than lose even one of them. And there was him, Zayn, who had nothing but would give away every penny he had to protect himself.

As he sat there, the door behind him opened and a young boy, around seven years old, climbed down to sit next to him. Zayn was startled for a moment.

"Hello," the boy said.

"Hey," Zayn replied and looked away, rubbing his palm together. He hoped the kid would leave but turns out he had no such intentions.

"Why aren't you wearing a jumper?" he asked.

Zayn shrugged and sniffed. He really really didn't want to talk. Go away, he begged in his head.

"My mum says we should all wear jumpers in winter. Or you can get a runny nose. And runny nose's not nice."

Zayn turned towards the kid. "Well, I don't have one."

"You don't have a jumper?" the boy asked, wide eyed.

"Nope," replied Zayn.

"Why? Did you lose it? Won't your mum be angry?" he asked.

"No, I just don't have one. Some bad men stole my jumpers," he replied. "And my mum...doesn't know that."

"Oh." the boy's forehead creased. He looked thoughtful. Suddenly, he got up and went back into the house. Zayn sighed, glad that the kid had finally left him alone. However, not a minute later, the kid reemerged from the house, holding a jumper in his hands. "Here, have my jumper. I have many."

Zayn stared at the jacket in his hands, completely taken aback. He hadn't expected that at all. The jumper wouldn't fit anyway but it was the kindest thing anyone has done for him in a while. "Teddy!" a woman called from inside. "Come from breakfast, love!"

Teddy, the boy, jumped and Zayn guessed he wasn't supposed to be out here. "Oh no! Take it. Fast!" he exclaimed, shoving the jumper in Zayn arms. Before Zayn could protest, he'd run back inside.

Zayn sat there, tiny jumper clutched in his hands, staring at the spot where the boy had been standing a moment ago. It's had been a long time since he'd seen kindness and even longer since he'd been on the receiving end of it and suddenly, he craved freedom like he hadn't dared to for a while now.

He was snapped out of his reverie when an official came and stood in front of him. His immediate reaction was to startle and think of escape until he realized that he wasn't working for Simon anymore. This was his chance. "Sir, I'm Detective Hudson. If you don't mind, I have some questions regarding the robbery. Do you live here?" the woman asked.

"Uh...no. I don't live here actually but... I-I've...I've... I need help," he said, finding it difficult to talk for some reason.

The woman looked taken aback by his words. "Oh... Well, I was actually going to question you on last night's robbery.. You don't happen to know anything about the robbery, do you?"

"No! No. I only came here this morning."

"Alright. Tell me what you need then, make it quick. I don't have much time. This better be important, alright, kid?"

Zayn nodded, taking a deep breath. "Simon Cowell" was the first thing that escaped his lips. Five minutes later, he was in a police car with the lady, who'd abandoned the robbery case after barking out instructions and now, he was being driven to a hospital.

Maybe there was hope for him after all. 

****

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, everyone. I'm so sorry that I kept everyone waiting. I know that I said that it was gonna be a short break but Med school life caught up to me and I had to focus on that for a bit. But I'm back now and I hope you all enjoy this story. And please, do recommend it to your friends if you think it's good. And constructive criticism is always welcome.


	10. Shadows

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it's been a long time. I won't even try to explain it away. I'm sorry for keeping everyone waiting. I've read all your comments and they make me so happy but it was very hard to find motivation to do anything, let alone write, in the past year. Apart from the one month of exam prep and another month of exams, I have been completely free and yet, I didn't bother writing. I didn't do anything at all. I just went to class, returned to my room and slept. So, yeah, I have no excuses. 
> 
> However, I will continue to write this story. As of now, I can't say how regular I'll be but I will promise to try my best. Thank you so much for reading my story and for leaving such lovely comments. Here's a new chapters. Your feedback is always appreciated.

The phone rang out for the third time. Laura huffed. She'd been trying to reach David the whole day, unsuccessfully. Putting her cell away, she walked up to the doctor who was currently tending to the boy, Zayn.

"How's his condition?" she asked, eyeing Zayn a little apprehensively. The boy looked like he'd seen a ghost.

"He'll be alright, with a little care. He's malnourished. And there are some really deep scars on him as well as obvious evidence of repeated sexual and physical assault. I hope he's got someone to go back to?" the doctor asked, turning from Laura to Zayn. He said nothing and shook his head just a little.

Laura frowned and turned to the doctor. "We'll try and arrange something. How about the other boy, Stan? How's he doing?"

The doctor sighed deeply and led her out of the room. Once they were outside the door, he answered, "I can't really say anything, for sure... The damage to his system is extensive. Had he been in a good physical condition originally, he'd have been alright, I suppose. However, he was already rather weak to begin with. His body wasn't equipped for that sort of starvation and neglect. I hate to say this but I'll be surprised if he makes it out of here alive. It's a good thing his family is here already."

The doctor gave her an apologetic smile and left. Laura stared after him. Really, she just wanted to lock herself somewhere safe with Annie but she knew she would never truly be safe as long as Simon was free.

Shaking her head, she turned to Zayn and smiled. Moving closer, she pulled up a chair and sat beside him. "So," she started. "I'm gonna have to ask you some questions. I understand that it might be difficult to talk about it, so take your time, alright?"

Zayn nodded. He wanted Simon behind bars more than anything. Laura picked up a recorder, letting Zayn have a look. "I'm gonna have to get this on record. So, you'll have to verbalize your answers. No nodding."

She placed the recorder on the bedside table and began her questioning.

****

Johannah was still on the couch when Dan came downstairs the next morning. Louis was curled up like a child with his face pressed against her stomach. She didn't think it was the most comfortable position. It had to be hard to breathe but he was sleeping well and that's what mattered.

Dan gave her a sympathetic smile and a soft kiss to the forehead before moving to the kitchen to prepare breakfast for the family. Johannah smiled softly to herself.

Sometimes she couldn't believe how lucky she had got with Dan. She couldn't imagine any of her previous partners doing any of the housework or even helping her out. With Dan, however, housework or the kids were never her job alone. It hadn't been long at all but somehow, she knew that this time was different, that Dan would stay.

It was half an hour later when the twins came bounding down the steps, bickering amongst themselves, that Louis stirred. Johannah tutted and motioned at the girls to be quiet and they froze immediately but Louis was already awake.

He scrambled away the moment he realized that he was on his mother's lap. "Sorry," he mumbled, fixing his clothes nervously.

Johannah only smiled sadly and pressed a kiss to his forehead. "Morning, love," she said, before joining her boyfriend in the kitchen.

"G'morning," Louis whispered, quietly leaving the room. He patted the girls' heads on his way out, causing them stare, teary-eyed, at his retreating back.

Once freshened up, Louis sat on the floor, in the corner of his room with his phone cradled in his hands. He waited for Harry to call. Harry's phone calls were the highlights of his days. Not that he disliked his family. However, the way they tiptoed around him got on his nerves sometimes.

Louis dropped his phone in fright when it started to ring.

"Haz," he gasped, as he hit 'answer'.

"Uhm hi Louis... It's actually Laura."

"Oh...hello."

"I'm sorry it's not who you were expecting," Laura said, gently.

Louis closed his eyes and sighed. Her voice was so calming. He couldn't deny that he was disappointed that it wasn't Harry though.

"It's alright. I w-wasn't expecting anyone."

Laura chuckled. "Okay, Louis. I'll still make it quick so that you can talk to Harry soon."

Louis nodded although she couldn't see him. "We've found another survivor, Louis. His name is Zayn Malik," she said. 

Louis sucked in a breath. "I know him."

"I thought you would. He's currently in the hospital, being treated for dehydration and malnutrition. He'll be fine, they said."

Laura was quiet for a while. "He looked to be in a bad shape, if you ask me, but they said he'll be fine. They're the professionals."

Louis bit the inside of his cheek hard, stifling a whimper. It was his fault. He'd known that the moment he left, someone would take his place and that someone would be Zayn. Zayn was out though. He had made it out and it made Louis feel like an idiot. All this time, he'd thought escape was impossible, but Zayn making it out changed things. It meant that escape was possible and he was just too stupid to try. Too much of a coward.

"Louis," Laura called. He'd obviously missed part of the conversation.

"Y-yeah, I'm listening."

He heard Laura sigh on the other end. "I was saying that Zayn isn't sure about where Simon is right now because he was driven to his client's place, blindfolded, last night. However, the entire group is obviously still in London. That is all the more reason for you to stay away from London. Okay, Louis?"

"Yes, I understand."

"Now, Zayn said they were moved through underground tunnels. Obviously, we missed something when we checked out the old place. Zayn believes that there are several locations connected through tunnels and that it is a network. So, we're starting investigation of the tunnels soon. I just thought that I'd let you know."

"Thank you...for letting me know."

"Okay. I'll let you talk to Harry now. I'm sure he's waiting to call you. We'll find him, Louis. Keep faith in us, alright? We'll make sure you're all safe."

"I d-do. I have faith in you."

"Thank you, Louis," said Laura, before hanging up.

Almost immediately after, Harry called him. "Louis, who were you talking to? I was worried," Harry said.

"Haz... It was Laura."

"Laura? Everything alright?"

"Yeah. Yeah, everything is alright. Someone got out. They'll find Simon. He's in London."

"Oh. Did you know them?"

"Yes."

"Was it a friend?"

"Not really. B-but he had to take my place when I left Harry," Louis said, his tone almost whiny. He wanted to cry all of a sudden. Lord, he cried so much these days.

"Hey, hey, Lou. It's alright, love. It's not your fault. And he's out now. What's his name?"

"Zayn."

"Would you like me to go see him? I can make sure he's comfortable and being taken care of. Will that make you feel any better?"

"Yes," Louis breathed. "Yes, please. I'd like that."

"Okay, Lou. Always so kind, love." Louis blinked, his cheeks turning red and warm.

****

David groaned as he regained consciousness. There was a shrill sound coming from somewhere and it was giving him quite the headache. He pressed his fingers against his pounding head. "God," he breathed.

"Pick up the damn phone, David! That bitch has been calling you all day. It's pissing me the fuck off," he heard Mary shout from wherever she was.

David scrambled to find his phone. "Hello," he croaked as he pressed the phone to his ear.

"He- David? Are you alright? You sound... Do I need to come over?"

"No! No, I'm fine. I'll be there. I'm sorry. I was just...asleep. I'll be there soon. Don't come here," he insisted, hanging up.

He groaned again as he looked at the time. It was four in the evening and Laura was going to chew him out and frankly, he wasn't in the mood. He stumbled to his feet and walked into the adjacent room.

Mary was sat on the floor, in a dress that she shouldn't be wearing if she wanted to sit on the floor. There were two empty bottles of wine beside her and one half empty bottle. She sat there, a glass of wine in one hand, flipping a photo album with the other. She hadn't even noticed him.

"That's a blessing," he murmured to himself as he moved away from the door. He showered and dressed quickly, swept the shards of broken glass from the kitchen floor, put together two sandwiches quickly, applied the 'concealer' thing he'd brought online over his bruises and left the house, leaving one sandwich on the kitchen counter with the hopes that his wife would remember to eat today.

****

"Where were you?" Laura hissed at David walked in.

"Not now, Laura. Fill me in, please."

Laura's mouth fell open. Narrowing her eyes, she jabbed him in the chest, "Not now? You were gone the entire day. No sign of you, no phonecall, nothing. And then, you just magically reappear, as if I wasn't freaking out the entire day."

"Aww, I'm touched," David shot back, his tone sharp. "But frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn. I'm here now. So. Fill. Me. In."

Laura stared back, unimpressed. "You know what? I don't need to deal with this. Go home. You need rest. Go sort yourself out or whatever. I'll take care of this. Go."

David frowned. "What...?" he asked.

Laura huffed and started walking away. "No, wait." Laura stopped and spun around, looking absolutely murderous. Yet her voice was calm when she spoke. "I have worked very hard to get here, David. And I will not have the likes of you speak to me like I'm your subordinate. You have been gone an entire day, leaving your partner to cover for you. You cannot waltz back in and offer no explanation and you definitely cannot use me as your punching bag. Now you either behave, or you go home. I suggest the latter."

"No! No. I can't go ho- I don't want to go home. I'll- I'll behave," David stammered.

Somehow, he'd let his issues get the better of him and now he was being schooled for being unprofessional and rude.

"Good," said Laura, walking towards their office. David followed.

"I'm sorry, Laura."

"It's alright, detective. Let's get to work."

"Okay."

"Also, your concealer work is very poor. Remind me to teach you."

David stopped in his tracks and stared at the back of her head, as she went on without him.

****

"So, this guy we're supposed to meet... What's his name?"

"His name is Zayn, Liam. I told you this," replied Harry with a huff.

"Right. Right, I didn't hear you the first time... Do we _have_ to go?"

Harry sighed. He knew Liam was uncomfortable with the whole situation and he felt bad for stringing him along. Harry had asked that Liam be provided with security too and David had said that they needed to stick together. It was easier to monitor them like this.

Liam had always hated hospitals. He was a softy like that and talking to someone who had been through so much suffering would probably kill him.

"You can stay outside, Liam, if you'd like. I just have to ensure that he's being taken care of. I promised Louis."

Liam shook his head. "No. I'll come with you. I'll be fine."

Harry smiled. "Just letting you know that you have an option," he said as they arrived at the hospital.

Liam stared sadly at the people around them as they walked towards Zayn's room. Harry put his arm around his shoulder, steering him on, when he started to wander off like a lost puppy. Harry pulled him to a stop right outside the room Zayn was being kept in.

"You can stay out here, Liam. I don't mind."

Liam took in a shaky breath, looking up and down the corridor. There were a lot of sad, hurt people there.

"No. I'll go in," he said. Harry nodded in understanding. The nurse who was showing them the way led them in.

To say that Zayn was beautiful would be an understatement. There was something intense about him. Harry thought it was his eyes. Belatedly, he realized that the reason his eyes were so prominent right now was because he was staring at them, startled and wide-eyed.

"Wh-who...?" The nurse rushed to him, checking his vitals and talking to him calmly to let him him know that they were friends of Louis' and that the detectives on his case had insisted that they talk to him. Harry approached him.

"Hello, Zayn. I'm Harry Styles, a friend of Louis Tomlinson. I assume you know him...?"

Zayn seemed hesitant to answer. His gaze flitted from Harry to Liam to the nurse and back again. "I don't know where he is," he said and looked away, obviously nervous.

"We know where Louis is, Zayn. He's safe and he's with family. He wanted us to meet you and to ensure that you're safe and healthy."

Zayn narrowed his eyes at Harry. He scoffed. "He didn't think about that when he just ran off and left us to pay for it," he spat, all sharp edges and hateful.

Harry's eyes widened. He opened his mouth to say something but found that he was at a loss for words. To his surprise, Liam beat him to it. He stepped forward. "I'm sorry that you had to suffer, Zayn, but didn't _you_ do the same?" he asked, calm as ever.

Zayn nearly snapped his neck when he turned to face Liam, with a look so fierce that Liam stepped back from the force of it.

"Say that again," he threatened. Harry was pretty sure that he'd growled. He didn't expect Liam to reply after that.

"I'm not wrong," came the reply, however. "Yes, Louis left when he found the opportunity and so did you. Will you really hate him for trying to stay alive? For trying to keep _Harry_ alive? I don't know if you know this but Harry was being held hostage and they would've killed him if Louis hadn't done what he did."

Zayn stared at him for a moment and then, he seemed to deflate. His fingers shook as he fiddled with the comforter. "I know. It's just...there are so many of them down there. They're still there! Some of them are children. We both betrayed them," he said, finally, not meeting their eyes anymore.

"In a situation like that, you have to look out for yourself and I'm glad you did. I'm glad you made it out," Liam said, with a soft smile.

Zayn didn't look up. "Are you? You don't even know me," he said.

Harry couldn't help the chuckle that escaped me. "Oh, trust him on this. Liam is a bleeding heart if there ever was one. He probably spends sleepless nights worrying about people he doesn't know."

That got Zayn to crack a smile. "That's nice," he whispered, a hint of moistness in his eyes. "So, maybe there was someone who was worried for me while I was in there, even though they didn't know me yet."

Harry could swear he heard Liam's breath hitch. Who could blame him? If broody Zayn was a model off the cover of a GQ magazine, smiley Zayn was a happy child with his favorite chocolate. The smile was gone too soon, however. Zayn, conscious and shy and a little scared, put a hand over his mouth and looked down. The change in demeanor didn't escape Liam's notice. When Harry turned to look at him, he already had tears on the verge of escaping his eyes. Turning back to Zayn quickly, Harry spoke again.

"Alright, Zayn. What we really want right now is to keep you safe. The cops are on the lookout for Simon, as I'm sure you've been told. Meanwhile, we need to keep you, Louis and Stan safe."

"And you, Harry," Liam added.

"And me. We don't need any of us getting kidnapped again. Now, Louis is at home with his family. Stan...will be here at the hospital for a bit and he has good security here. My house is a fortress right now. You, on the other hand, are ready to be discharged, so... Do you have any place to go?"

"Not really. But I can find a shelter or a care home or something, I'm sure," Zayn replied.

Harry and Liam shared a look. They'd talked about this already.

"Actually, Zayn, we had decided that you should come and stay at my place until Simon is caught and this thing dies down. Liam is staying there too for now."

Zayn looked shocked. He opened and closed his mouth soundlessly. "I... N-no. I can't. You don't have to do that."

"Zayn. We insist. Besides, no matter where you decide to stay, David and Laura will want to put security around you. It's just less effort if we're all in one place. My house is big enough. You'll have all the privacy you want."

"Yeah, Haz here is actually this huge pop star. So, he's got the mansion and everything," Liam piped up.

Harry rolled his eyes and smacked him upside the head, "Shut up, Lima. Anyway, I understand if you can't make up your mind yet. I was told you'll be discharged tomorrow. We'll be here. You can let us know then. Is that alright?"

Zayn nodded. "Y-yes," he whispered. "That'd be great."

****

It was late in the afternoon when Louis snuck out of his room again. The house sounded empty but Louis knew better. Johannah, Dan and Lottie had decided on taking turns "watching the house" (watching Louis) while the rest of the members were gone.

Today was Lottie's turn. Normally, she'd pester him the entire day, begging him to come out of his room and do something, "talk, eat, watch a movie, anything". Today, however, Louis barely heard a squeak the entire day. It made him very nervous. At first, Louis was thankful for the peace but now, the silence bothered him terribly. Lottie was not one to be so quiet. None of the members of this family were, except Louis now. So, Louis decided to go and have a look.

"She's fine, she's fine," he whispered to himself, as he climbed down the stairs into the living room. He could swear that he heard someone else in the house. And was that a shadow he just saw from the corner of his eye?

Few years back, Louis wouldn't have been able to make the trip downstairs in perfect silence. Over the years, 'discipline' and subordination had been beaten into him very well.

He'd thought up a hundred different scenarios in the time it took him to reach the living room. What he hadn't expect was for it to be empty. His heart dropped to his stomach. Gasping, he ran to the kitchen, empty; the backyard, empty; Lottie's room, empty; his mom's bedroom, empty; the twins' room, empty; his own room again, empty.

"Lots?" he'd meant to scream but all that came out was a gasp. He mouthed her name again as he sank to the floor outside his room. He couldn't breathe. He was drowning. It was dark, so dark. Wait... What was that? Frowning, Louis followed the sound of running water. When he realized where it was coming from, he ran into Lottie's room and launched himself at the bathroom door.

"Lottie," he yelled. "Lots, open the door!" Louis pounded at the door.

"Lou?" came her voice from the other side.

There was a click, the knob turned and the door opened revealing Lottie on the other side, a confused expression on her face. Louis choked on his own sobs as he grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her in for a hug.

"Gosh, Lottie, I was so scared. What were you doing?" he breathed, babbling on about how quiet it was and how he'd definitely seen someone and how he was sure Simon had taken her away.

"Lou! Lou," Lottie called, untangling herself from his arms. "Lou, _hey_ , I'm fine. I was just sleeping because I was up late watching movies last night. And then, I was in the washroom," she explained. "I'm sorry I scared you, Lou."

Louis sniffled and let out a nervous laugh. "I'm sorry," he said, sheepishly. "I was being ridiculous and paranoid. I'm sorry."

Lottie sighed. "No, Lou. It wasn't ridiculous at all. It's okay to be scared," she assured him. Smiling softly at him, she continued, "I hate that you were stressed out but I think it's really nice...how much you care about us. I missed having a big brother, Loulou."

Louis frowned and slapped her arm lightly. "Rude! I was terrified. It's not funny," he scolded, turning and walking off.

Lottie smirked at his back, well aware of the tiny smile he was trying to hide.

****


End file.
